Brisbane Lions recruit Allen Christensen has revealed he "copped a fair bit" of criticism for his decision to relocate interstate, but his response was just a strong: "it's my life and I control my own destiny."
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Christensen used his first media interview as a Brisbane Lions player to stress that his decision to leave Geelong, a club he played in a premiership with, was "completely non-football related" but would not expand further, saying only that: "I'm in a happy place."
The small forward's request last Wednesday to be traded to a Queensland-based club due to personal reasons caught many outside Geelong by surprise, but the process to move him north has been swift, with a trade eventually being finalised on Monday.
By Tuesday, Christensen was facing the media in his new colours insisting: "I'm more than happy to be up at Brisbane now.
"This change up for me was never about money or anything like that.
"I've copped a bit over the last week, but the people who are giving me stick are the ones who don't care about me.
"They [Geelong] were completely understanding of where I wanted to head in my life.
"Sometimes you've just got to do what you think is right and what's in your head and what's in your heart."
The Lions sent pick 21 - the selection it received from Greater Western Sydney for Joel Patfull - to Geelong in exchange for Christensen.
As rumours continue to circulate around Christensen, the 23-year-old said he was not comfortable speaking publicly about the personal issues that have necessitated his "fresh start", but predicted he would one day be able to clear the air.
"I'm on top of everything," he said. "One of the problems is you've got to admit to it [the problems]. I'm not the only one who goes through it. I'll come out in due time and talk about it, because I think I can be a really good role model to the community.
"I'll deal with that myself and with the family and friends around me. I'll just keep working on being a better person and becoming a good Brisbane Lions player."
Christensen missed the first 13 rounds of the season after having back surgery in February, and then had another back procedure in September that forced him to miss Geelong's two finals.
The clever goal-sneak said he was four weeks into a 12-week recovery from the latest bout of surgery, a timeline which will have him starting pre-season training just before the Christmas break.
"It's going really well, pretty much pain-free and I passed the medical [examination] the other day, so they [Brisbane] were happy with it," he said.
