There is nothing more distressing in sport than seeing what we saw on Friday night. When Jharal Yow Yeh went up in the 23rd minute of the Broncos’ clash with the Rabbitohs, at first glance it looked like he came down in a jarring fashion. It wasn’t until seeing how he reacted that it was clear just how jarring.
Unless the player in question is a certain fullback in blue and gold, there is always a noted difference between a bad injury and a horrible injury in the NRL. In Perth we saw that difference.
Yow Yeh didn’t come reeling out of the contest with Souths’ Dylan Farrell. He sat up in distress, shock and concern. Then, after a bit of help from suitably concerned team-mate Justin Hodges, lay back and started visibly trembling.
As Yow Yeh would clearly still have been in shock, it was more sadness than agony painted all over his face once the doctors got out there. It’s just sickening seeing someone who you are aware is as tough as nails in that much pain and distress.
On a positive note, it’s always encouraging to see how the other players on the field react to incidents like this. All the players who saw the injury and Jharal’s reaction were immediately summoning the officials.
Justin Hodges’, a player who’s been known to misplace his brain from time to time, proved his heart is certainly in the right place. The second the severity of the injury became apparent to him, Hodges intelligently did his level best to avert Yow Yeh’s gaze from the sickening appearance of the injury. Captain Thaiday’s concern was also evident.
On the other, but equally impressive, side of the coin it was nice to see opponents Matt King, Greg Inglis and Farrell showing the due compassion.
Now, I draw the reader’s attention to the surface at nib Stadium. This time last year we saw the same two teams play in a 1970s-esque quagmire and this year we saw a game with equally sub-par ball handling with the addition of a number of injuries from otherwise completely innocuous incidents.
I know where I’d be investing the $100 million investment into nib.
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