Franz Wagner on playing in Berlin game: I probably shouldn't have played, but I don't really regret the decision to play

Injuries hit you hard this past year. How tough was that mentally and physically? Looking back, do you regret playing in the Berlin game, or did it worsen the injury? Franz Wagner: It was very challenging. At the end of the day, if we’re not healthy as athletes, we can’t do our jobs, so that’s the most important thing. And so there’s always that pressure that you need to be out there and perform and help the team out. So not being able to do that and not seeing the results in rehab, too, when you’re going really hard, it was really frustrating for me. And basically, trying to rehab the same injury three times in a year was tough for me, always having the same kind of setback feeling. The way it went, I probably shouldn’t have played. Everybody understands the situation that it was, and honestly, I hate to say it, but I don’t really regret the decision to play. It was that special of a moment for me, and for a lot of other people who were there. So, it just happened to be a bad moment in time, probably, but maybe some people hate me for this, but it was a really special moment for my family and me. So, I was happy that I got the chance to at least be out there.

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Injuries hit you hard this past year. How tough was that mentally and physically? Looking back, do you regret playing in the Berlin game, or did it worsen the injury? Franz Wagner: It was very challenging. At the end of the day, if we’re not healthy as athletes, we can’t do our jobs, so that’s the most important thing. And so there’s always that pressure that you need to be out there and perform and help the team out. So not being able to do that and not seeing the results in rehab, too, when you’re going really hard, it was really frustrating for me. And basically, trying to rehab the same injury three times in a year was tough for me, always having the same kind of setback feeling. The way it went, I probably shouldn’t have played. Everybody understands the situation that it was, and honestly, I hate to say it, but I don’t really regret the decision to play. It was that special of a moment for me, and for a lot of other people who were there. So, it just happened to be a bad moment in time, probably, but maybe some people hate me for this, but it was a really special moment for my family and me. So, I was happy that I got the chance to at least be out there.