In the latest episode of Old Bull, Young Buck with David Mundy and Griffin Logue, guest Alex Pearce spoke about how he used a year lost to injury working to return stronger than ever.
A victim of a broken leg in 2017 and broken ankle in 2019, Pearce turned to bone broth to help with his recovery.
It’s a recipe that’s been used by a number of elite athletes in recent years, including LA Lakers legend Kobe Bryant in the later stages of his career.
It meant that a slowcooker was Pearce’s must-have accessory when the club travelled to the Gold Coast for a hub in 2020 – much to the displeasure of those who shared his floor, which included Mundy.
“I wanted to ask what it tasted like. On the Gold Coast hub last year, we were on the same level and you had the slow cooker going in the common room. And it absolutely stank!” Mundy said as he grilled Pearce.
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Pearce explained the complicated process involved in making the drink that is believed to prevent and aid injury recovery.
“I started about early last year. I did some research on how to make bone broth, I read a couple articles of different sportsmen using it,” Pearce said.
“I’d go to the butchers and ask for joint bones, because the cartilage around there is quite good and some marrow bones cut up.
“I’d go to the butcher and he’d know I was coming, he’d be like ‘yep, hi boneman’ and get them ready for me.
“The method was, you had to cook them first, have the oven at 240 degrees for about an hour. Then chuck them in the slowcooker, a bit of vinegar to help break down the bones a bit more. A few veggies, a bit of garlic and some other random stuff. Cook it for 48 hours and then strain it out.
“I bought these glass mugs. The broth would turn into a jelly so you’d microwave it and drink it like a tea.”
Pearce’s return to football has allowed an unwanted streak to end, playing his first game with Logue against Collingwood after the good mates and fellow backs were teammates for five years.
“We were thinking there was a bit of a curse. Everyone kept coming up to us (in the leadup to the game) and I just wanted to stop talking about it,” Logue said.
“Even before flying out, I said to myself, I’m not going to mention it, let’s just wait until we get to game day.
“Someone up there might have been creating a curse, but we’ve got through it now.”
Pearce joked that spending the bye week with Logue must have helped break the curse, making a Harry Potter reference along the way.
“We got down south the weekend before, destroyed the horcrux and bang we’re back,” Pearce said.
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