By JARROD POTTER
DANDENONG Stingrays’ captain Lachlan Williams went from singing the club song to being admitted to hospital in only two days.
Last week was a bittersweet week for Williams, 18, from Somerville, who led his side to victory on Saturday before being rushed to the emergency room on Monday morning.
He was stellar in Dandenong’s 21-point win over the Gippsland Power – as he booted two goals and picked up 21 possessions – but once the adrenaline of the big win had subsided, Williams started to deteriorate quickly.
The livewire forward was unable to move on Saturday evening and throughout Sunday and by Monday morning a night of restless sleep left him no option but to go to hospital, where blood tests discovered he had appendicitis.
Thankfully his appendix hadn’t ruptured, but it was time for Williams to go under the knife and have the emergency appendectomy at Peninsula Private Hospital.
“Yesterday (Monday 15 June) morning I had trouble sleeping so I went to the hospital around 3am and got a blood test and they found out I had appendicitis,” Williams said.
“It was getting to the point where all of my blood tests were really high and basically had to have my appendix removed as soon as possible.”
Thankfully he didn’t receive any knocks to the stomach in the TAC Cup match on Saturday – after feeling ill on Friday.
“At first I was actually a bit sick on Friday – had a meal and felt bloated – then the next day I felt a bit sick in the stomach, but I felt alright playing footy,” Williams said.
“Then the next day I started really hitting it hard.
“I was really sick after the game and feeling really tired, was vomiting on Saturday and all Sunday I was physically dead.
“I couldn’t really do much, every time I moved it hurt.”
He’s recovering at the moment in hospital following the surgery and while it’s not a typical injury that keeps a player out of action, Williams thinks he should be able to return to TAC Cup football within a month.
“Could be maybe two to three weeks, just need to see how I’ll pull up – definitely missing this week that’s for sure, but don’t really know the exact amount,” Williams said.
“I’m still in hospital, but I’ll meet the surgeon again and will see how I go and talk to the doctors and physios at Stingrays.”
It’s the first major obstacle in an otherwise strong top-age season for Williams, who was named club captain and had finally adjusted to the added responsibility that comes with the title.
“At the start it was a bit different, I found myself focusing a bit more on everything that was going around, but after a couple of weeks of talking to Blacky (Stingrays’ coach Craig Black) and that, they said to relax and play my natural game and not to worry as much,” Williams said.
“I find that if I’m not worrying about what’s going on and just focus on myself I play a bit better and I’m starting to get some consistency now.”
Williams believes Saturday’s win was led by the Stingrays’ depth – as the younger brigade have stepped up in the absence of Vic Country and school commitments across the Dandenong list.
“I reckon it’s our depth – the last couple of weeks we’ve missed a lot of guys due to nationals and school footy guys as well,” Williams said.
“It’s good to see the 17-year-olds coming up and also some of the 18-year-olds who are starting to get a couple of games step up to the plate and contribute to the game.
“Everyone knew what happened at the start of the year against Gippsland (a 55-point loss) and I reckon the way we went about it was really good.
“We had the right mindset, stuck to our structures and listened to coach really well, so it was just the depth and the contributions by all 23 players.”
