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Yesterday it was announced that new Collingwood recruit Jeremy Howe is likely to miss Round 1 because of a broken finger.
But it’s not your average pre-season injury. Howe sustained this latest setback in what could best be described as a ‘freak frisbee accident’, catching his middle finger in the ground while throwing the frisbee around with his pet dog at home.
While the implications for Collingwood’s start to the season and the impact the injury could have on the Pies’ forward line are of interest, I’m instead in the mood for a stroll down memory lane to relive some of the wackiest and most unlikely off-field injuries in the history of the AFL.
Disclaimer: as someone who has been clocked between the legs with a cricket ball more than once, I will say this, injuries are never funny! Except about two weeks after you finish recovering, at which point they become really really funny.
Levi Greenwood, betrayed by his own pants
You don’t expect an injury to come when you’re at home chilling in your trackpants, but that’s just what happened to Howe’s new teammate Levi Greenwood in 2010.
A North Melbourne player at the time, Greenwood broke his big toe when he got it caught in his trackies and twisted it walking down the stairs.
Sharrod Wellingham bounces onto the injury list
The Eagles traded a first round pick for Sharrod Wellingham in 2012 so they would’ve been pretty annoyed when in his first year with the club Wellingham injured his ankle, missing the start of the season.
How’d he do it? On a trampoline of course. Wellingham ‘landed awkwardly’ while bouncing and did some damage to ligaments in his ankle, and in the end had to wear a moon boot for several weeks before he finally made his Eagle debut in Round 6.
Nat Fyfe sings Slip Slidin’ Away
Nat Fyfe is known for being one of the classier players in the AFL but like all of us the reigning Brownlow Medallist has had the occasional embarrassing moment.
In 2012, Fyfe was mysteriously withdrawn from an away match against Adelaide in the lead-up to finals. Why? Accoring to teammate Tendai Mzungu, he slipped on a suitcase while at the hotel.
A training injury of a different kind
Six-time all Australian Brad Johnson might be one of the most memorable players of the modern era, and his memorability is only enhanced by the fact that he once took a hit from a golf cart carrying drinks at training.
Already recovering from a calf injury at the time, the incident meant a longer lay-off for Johnson, whose 364-came career came to an end later that season.
Nigel Smart answers the question ‘what’s in a name?’
In 1992 Nigel Smart participated in the most poorly conceived motivational activity of all time, attempting to walk barefoot across a bed of hot coals.
In a result that should’ve shocked absolutely no one, Smart copped severe burns to the soles of his feet and missed several weeks.
That’s pretty painful – but at least Nigel learned that just because you’re a Smart, doesn’t mean you are smart.
No sympathy for a shark bite
Back in 1989 Brisbane were called the Bears and one of their players, Mike Richardson, happened to work a side job feeding sharks at Sea World.
You can see where this is going.
During a feeding show – yep, in front of a live audience – Richardson was bitten by a 2.5m long grey nurse shark for whom he was holding out a fish on a feed stick.
He later complained that the Bears weren’t doing enough to help him through his recovery, a claim that illicted one of history’s most unfortunately-worded responses from Bears general manager Shane O’Sullivan.
“If he says that to me I’ll tear shreds off him,” said O’Sullivan at the time. “He’s okay, he was in the office yesterday. He was limping but he’s not dead.”
In memory of Kurt, who would’ve found all of these stories hilarious. RIP buddy.