Max Holmes, the X-factor for the Geelong Football Club, is looking to make the most of his opportunity for revenge. He’ll meet the Brisbane Lions for the grand final, three years after an injury forced him to miss out on a similar chance. Holmes had a reversal of fortune in 2022. A small hamstring strain picked up in the lead-in to the PF ruled him out of that grand championship decider maxi. At 20 years old, he went through a lot of emotional upheaval, often crying for hours about not making the team.
Holmes believes that had there been an extra week off before the grand final, he would have been cleared to play. This feeling underlies his passionate support for a week-long break before the grand final. He’s convinced that this proposal will do a world of good for future players dealing with the same issues.
Building Relationships
Following his heart-wrenching experience in 2022, Holmes recognized the need to strengthen his relationship with Geelong’s head coach, Chris Scott. Initially, he felt a disconnect with Scott, stating, “To an extent, I didn’t have much of a relationship with Scotty at that stage anyway.”
Intent on closing this gap, Holmes kicked off a round of coffee-catch-up chats with Scott in the 2023 pre-season. These meetings proved fruitful as he reflected positively on their discussions, saying, “We talked about everything and nothing at the same time and formed a relationship.” He now feels they have built a strong bond: “Now I feel like we’re quite close together and we’ve got a good relationship despite what’s happened.”
Drawing from Experience
Holmes hasn’t just dedicated himself to improving his game; he’s made it a priority to aid the development of his teammates. He has based his business on what he’s learned from his own experience and recently helped Tom Stewart. This year, unfortunate Tom had an injury that took him off the field entirely. Holmes knows firsthand the mental and emotional toll of not playing games and has communicated and passed on what he learned to Stewart.
Further, he voiced optimism in his other starting lefty, Zach Guthrie, to fill the gap with Stewart out. “I believe Zach can step up to the plate when called upon,” he stated. Holmes was full of praise for Geelong’s rearguard, not only for their display over the finals series, but for their display this season.
Looking Ahead
As Holmes prepares to take the field against Brisbane, he reflects on his journey since missing out on the grand final in 2022. He does not shy away from admitting that though his experience was deeply traumatic, it was indeed traumatic enough to create space for healing. That’s all in the past and, as I mentioned, I get it now anyway. At the time you don’t, but it’s very internally logical and there’s no external judgement of it,” he said.
With hope and new connections inspiring his motivation, Holmes is ready to make waves on big final day. “Hopefully we can just get one (premiership) this week and put it in the past,” he concluded.
