BRENT Reilly says he and wife Jamie won’t stop their children from playing football despite the former Crows defender being forced into retirement with a head injury last year.

The father-to-be hasn’t revealed whether they’re expecting a boy or a girl in June but says they won’t stand in their way if they want to follow in his footsteps.

While 200 games would qualify a Reilly Jnr under the AFL’s father/son rule, Adelaide on the weekend hosted its inaugural SANFL talent trial ahead of the first national women’s competition starting in 2017.

Reilly’s only recollection of the incident on February 9 last year is waking up in Royal Adelaide Hospital with 70 staples in his head and everyone worrying about him.

But he knows the trauma his wife and friends went through by witnessing his seizure and emergency surgery.

“Jamie, she saw the worst and it was pretty scary,” he said.

“So I understand if there are hesitations (about kids playing) but we will support our kid in whatever they decide to do.”

The teammate involved in the innocuous training collision, Sam Siggins, last year left Adelaide to return to Tasmania and revealed he was battling depression.

Reilly said he made sure he spoke with Siggins to offer as much support as he could.

“I sat down with him a fair bit after I was OK and said ‘mate, these things happen, it’s not your fault, it’s just wrong place at the wrong time’,” Reilly said.

A year since the incident, the 32-year-old is still on anti-seizure medication but getting glowing reports from his neurologists and is living a normal life — driving a car, working, exercising and preparing to become a dad.

“It’s the next phase of life and the next chapter, we’re both pretty pumped to have the opportunity to have a baby which unfortunately a lot of people do miss out on,” he said.

reece.homfray@news.com.au