It's been a difficult couple of years for Corkman Ciaran Sheehan.
Having made the jump to Aussie Rules in 2013 and impressing greatly in his first two years it looked like it was all being taken away from him after a terrible run with injuries - but where many would have given up and packed their bags Sheehan stayed patient and this weekend he can reap the benefits of his determination.
After years of resilience, Sheehan has been selected by Carlton to take on the Adelaide Crows this Saturday and it will be his first game for the team in almost three years.
Ciaran Sheehan is back in for Carlton this week. His first game since round 23, 2014. Just a casual 1,035 days between games then. #AFL
— Jacob Landsmeer (@jlandsme_93) June 29, 2017
Having turned down the opportunity to join Carlton in 2009 the All-Ireland u21 winner continued to play for Cork until he was approached again in 2013 off the back of his performances in that year's International Rules series.
At the second opportunity, Sheehan decided to sign a 2-year deal and trekked down to Oz where he spent much of his first year playing for affiliate club The Northern Blues.
After some good performances in the lower leagues, Sheehan was called into Carlton's main squad at the end of the 2014 season and played the last four games of that year, and things were looking even better for him when he was given the Chris Judd Development Award (Academy side's player of the year).
Just as it seemed Sheehan was going to break a regular spot in the squad disaster struck and as he found himself with hamstring and knee problems. The injuries left him unable to play for much of the next two years and he was de-listed at the end of last season before resigning as an "international pick" in the rookie drafts.
Having to start from the bottom all over again was clearly no problem for Sheehan who settled right back in with The Northern Blues and his determination has now been rewarded with the place he briefly held in 2014.
