Kingston\u2019s Luke Pedlar has been rewarded for his consistent 2023 with a Rising Star nomination, saying he was honoured to be recognised for his efforts so far this campaign.<\/p>\n
The young forward was a key cog in Adelaide\u2019s 66-point Round 16 win over North Melbourne on Saturday, booting two goals and collecting 11 disposals.<\/p>\n
Pedlar was rewarded for his strong form this year, in which he has averaged 11.9 disposals and 8.3 kicks per game.<\/p>\n
Speaking to the media last Tuesday, Pedlar said after a tough start to his AFL career he was grateful his hard work had been recognised.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt definitely is pleasing, obviously I\u2019ve been through a bit in the last year with injury,\u201d Pedlar said. \u201cEven a bit of form stuff and finding myself in the team, so it\u2019s nice to get a bit of recognition this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just a bit of reward for a block of work that I\u2019ve done this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adelaide selected Pedlar with Pick No.11 at the 2020 AFL National Draft but persistent hip, groin and shoulder injuries limited his progress and led to him playing five games in his first two seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve had two shoulder reconstructions in three years so that\u2019s a long six months of rehab,\u201d Pedlar said. \u201cThere are just little things that pop up, I have carried groin injuries across the last few years as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first few games were a little bit rough and I probably wasn\u2019t ready at that stage, carrying a few injuries but coming into this season and doing a (full) pre-season block has been great for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pedlar said an injury free season and knowing his role in the forward line had contributed to his breakout season so far.<\/p>\n
\u201cKnowing my role in the side has been really helpful and I\u2019ve worked pretty closely with Rahls (James Rahilly) as a forward,\u201d Pedlar said. \u201cGetting my body and my mindset right was the main thing for me as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cTrying to get my core and muscles around my groin strong, that\u2019s what I had to get done to play at the elite level.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Consistency the key for former Kingston junior gaining Rising Star nomination Kingston\u2019s Luke Pedlar has been rewarded for his consistent 2023 with a Rising Star nomination, saying he was honoured to be recognised for his efforts so far this campaign. The young forward was a key cog in Adelaide\u2019s 66-point Round 16 win over North […]<\/p>\n