It was the injury that ended Mitch Hibberd’s season, but the emerging defender has revealed he did everything he could to “shake it off”.

Hibberd was sandwiched between two players in a marking contest during the first quarter of Saturday’s loss to Port Adelaide, initially hoping he could play on.

“I felt my shoulder slide a bit and I sort of shook it off and it probably just kept happening for the next five minutes,” Hibberd told NMFC.com.au.

“I think adrenaline was running through me so it wasn’t too bad. It just felt a bit funny. My shoulder just felt out of place.

“That was when the doctors came out and had a look at it and didn’t think it was any good.”

Hibberd sat the game out on the bench, and on Monday it was announced he’d undergo shoulder surgery and be sidelined for the remaining games. 

Nevertheless, after gaining some valuable experience at AFL level this season, the 20-year-old is staying positive.

“It’s not quite a reconstruction, so I’ll probably miss around four months,” Hibberd added.

“It is what it is and footy can be a tough game, but I’ll just come back ready next year and have a big pre-season.

“[At the] start of pre-season [I’ll be] ready to go.”

For more NMFC injury news and the full injury list, visit the Anytime Fitness Health Hub