"It’s round 10. If we don’t fix it we are in a lot of trouble, but there are 12 games to go. We’ve won 4 games – the season’s not over and we’ve got plenty of time."

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Davis’ on-field leadership and defensive nous have been sorely missed by GWS over the past fortnight, during which the former premiership favourites have continued their ladder slide. The 27-year-old admits he wasn’t the best spectator during losses to Essendon and North Melbourne.

"I’m a terrible watcher of football. I get very frustrated and angry. Even in the coaches’ box, I had to muffle myself a few times," Davis said. "Unfortunately, there’s a few things going wrong, which isn’t ideal. Our major issue is just our consistency. Every game we’ve played for the last month, apart from maybe Geelong, we’ve been in it and competitive. But patches of the games have really let us down."

Davis has weathered plenty of blows in his career, including a nasty hit in 2014. The key defender played three quarters with a ruptured kidney that threatened life and career before he was rushed to hospital.

His most recent collision was relatively tame, but the effects were still alarming. "Concussions are always scary, it’s something we’ve got to take very seriously," he said.