Emerging small forward Sam Switkowski is hopeful he can return to regular football in 2021 after missing the 2020 season due to a ‘complicated’ back injury.

Before missing the 2020 season, Switkowski was named as Fremantle’s 2019 Beacon Award winner as he impressed with his tackling pressure.

The 24-year-old is now back in full training and was among the best players in Friday’s match simulation, where he kicked two goals and heaped forward pressure on his opponents.

Despite being back to full fitness, Switkowski said he would need to continually manage his body and be smart with his recovery to avoid future injury.

“I’m feeling really good at the moment, I’m definitely grateful for that,” Switkowski said.

“I’ve had my challenges over the past few years at the club. I had a really complicated back injury over 2020 but I put some really hard work in and it’s starting to come into fruition now, which is really great. The season is approaching and I feel really prepared to get going and have a big 2021.

“What makes (the back injury) complicated is that it was a stress injury. The biggest part of it is management and how you return to training.

“Even now, it’s important for me to manage my load in training and the strength and conditioning team have been fantastic in getting that right.

“It was challenging last year as it was hard to find that perfect level of training, not doing too much or too little.

“Obviously, it’s a vigorous game and you need to be fit and strong to be able to get out there and play. I’ve learnt a lot about my body in the past year and I feel like I’m in a really good place now.”

Switkowski last played for Fremantle in August 2019, and said he was focusing on being mentally prepared for a return to football.

“When you haven’t placed for so long, the mental side of the game is really important and your confidence can fluctuate as you’re coming back,” Switkowski said.

“JL (senior coach Justin Longmuir) is really big on the mental side of the game. For me, meditation is a big thing. I focus a lot on breathing and I’m doing a lot of reading at the moment about breathing. If there are ever times of stress and anxiety, breathing settles that down.

“(It helps) to stay focused when you’re at training or in games if you get off task. Those relaxing breaths and then trigger words and things like that just get you switched back on, so I have a big focus on that.”