Fremantle star Hayden Young has revealed a visit to the world renowned Aspeter Sports Medical Clinic in Doha has given him enormous confidence that he won’t have another injury-plagued season and can consistently produce the elite standards that he has become known for.

Young experienced a frustrating 2025 after a broken leg prevented him from completing the majority of the pre-season. He then suffered multiple soft tissue injuries and played only nine games, which robbed the Dockers of their best kicker in the midfield.

Aspetar has become a popular clinic for footballers to visit in the off-season with Sean Darcy benefiting massively from his work there last summer. Jeremy McGovern, Elliot Yeo, Jordan De Goey and Callum Mills also previously flew to Doha to take advantage of the the elite medical facilities.

Young joined him in Doha during his break and said it taught him a lot.

“The overwhelming feeling was that I left there with a lot of optimism and hope,” Young explained.

“When you have a pretty interrupted year, you can get down on yourself and think you are prone to injuries. But that’s not the case. I left there with a lot of solutions and things that I can work on. The reality is there is no secret formula to keep yourself fit and healthy. It’s work.

“Last year I completed 27 per cent of pre-season. It’s not like a need a secret formula. It’s just getting out there and doing the work and training.

“Last year I had a broken leg and didn’t complete any of my off-season program. This year I completed all of my off-season training.”

Young’s importance to Fremantle was obvious when he won the Glendinning-Allan Medal for his 23 disposals and three goals in just his second game back from a long term hamstring injury.

But Young explained he entered games worrying if he would get through unscathed. Now he has a totally a different level of confidence.

“Last year, coming back and playing there were times when I didn’t really feel confident I my body. It’s not a great feeling when you’re going out there playing in big games and are not sure about how your body is going to hold up. I feel really confident now which is great,” he said.

“Despite all of my adversity, I was still able to come back and perform. That gives me a lot of confidence going into this year. Despite what happens in the pre-season and what happens at any stage of my career, I have the ability to get out there and do my job for the team.

“Sometimes when you go through adversity and challenges, it simplifies things for you. It definitely simplified my mindset going into games lats year. My output was pretty good.”