There was a time, not that long ago, when, for Dylan Grimes, the prospect of playing in an AFL preliminary final would have seemed as far away as Germany, where he had gone on a desperate medical mission to overcome persistent hamstring problems.

Grimes, who was Richmond’s first pick (No. 2 overall) in the AFL pre-season draft at the end of 2009, made his senior debut with the Tigers in the 2010 final home-and-away round, but in the ensuing three seasons, from 2011-13, managed to play just 25 out of a possible 67 senior games due to the injury woes plaguing him.

The trip he undertook to Germany was to see a doctor renowned for unorthodox, but successful, treatment of chronic hamstring trouble, involving a series of injections, comprising an extract of calf’s blood and an anti-inflammatory, into his lower back.

Eventually, after some further frustrating setbacks, Grimes was able to overcome those hamstring issues, and through long-awaited continuity with his football, he has become an extremely valuable member of Richmond’s defence, showcasing impressive on-field attributes, including excellent closing speed, tight checking of opponents, composure, solid marking, efficient ball use and exemplary courage.

“I always had a tremendous amount of support from the Club and they really put their faith in me. I do really feel lucky and incredibly indebted to the Club for the support they showed me,” Grimes said on SEN following the Tigers’ qualifying final win against Geelong, which catapulted them into the 2017 preliminary final on Saturday week.

“I missed a lot of footy as a young player, and often that can mean the end of a career, unfortunately.

“‘Dimma’ (coach Damien Hardwick) talks about the process and the long-term vision. And one thing that’s never wavered since I got drafted eight years ago is Dimma had a plan, and he told me I was part of that plan.

“It just made me relax in ‘rehab’ a little bit more.

“I could focus on my body and not have that sort of hanging over my head, whether or not I was going to get back to play.

“But there were certainly times in my rehab, after I’d had a couple of ‘hammy’ surgeries and a few foot problems as well, that I was thinking, am I ever going to get back to playing AFL footy? Is my body going to be good enough?

“So there were times where I had doubts . . . but I couldn’t be happier with how things turned out, to be honest.”