Christian Petracca’s 2024 Season Ending Injuries

[Mel Bourne 4,389]

2 hours ago, Demon17 said:

My strategy this year and best thing ever. Only afl360 I've watched was last night's trac interview. Cancelling kayo after this season. 

He's all class and a wonderful human. The interview showed Robinson for what he is. Goes for whateley too.

P.s. of course danger gets off after smacking the opponents head into turf. But hey let's still all pile on Steven May.

Sheeesh!

Dangerfield got off because the club disputed it, and I feel, rightly so. The only argument in favour of suspension was that Walsh’s arms were both pinned, thus preventing him from being able to brace. In a sling tackle that’s fair enough, but Dangerfield’s tackling motion was pretty textbook. 

The tackling rules have found themselves in a bit of a nowhere land of late. The unusually-tetchy argument that broke out between Lyons, Riewoldt, Buckley and Jordan post-game was an illustration of this. 
 

Pinning the arms in a sling tackle absolutely needs to be phased out. But in most other situations, not pinning the arms provides the opposition an opportunity to dispose. Which is completely at odds with the intent behind a tackle in the first place. 

[whatwhat say what 22,086]

8 minutes ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

It’s a feeling I get. I think if the decision was Tracc’s alone then yes, we’ll see him back out there. But it’s not his decision alone. His parents and other family members and in particular, his fiancé, will undoubtedly be advising him. 

that'd be the mfcss - welcome to the club!

as a long time sufferer, i recognise yr affliction and just want you to know that there's no known cure

it has only gone away for a month, in october 2021, and quickly came back when all the news about dogga signing a long term extension was dismissed in november 2021

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

7 minutes ago, Wells 11 said:

I think youre reading the tea leaves right  WCW. But he's also still traumatised and in pain and shock. Lets wait til it settles. If he's speaking the same way in 4-6 weeks I'll be right with you.  Its a huge thing to leave the game and opens up a massive hole in young mens lives when they do. So, he might change when things settle down and also when he gets back around the club again and feels the love everyone has for him. Hopefully he starts missing the game again. But if he retires for his health reasons then I will of course back him ...with a broken heart also...but will get behind our norm smith player whatever he does. 

Even if he did continue playing, he’ll never be the same again in terms of fearlessly going in hard, etc. Regardless of what people wanna believe, the psychological damage is way harder to overcome than the physical damage.

[Jaded No More 67,626]

This was a freak accident. It definitely isn’t something that is likely to happen again or be made worse like a concussion. Trac is in the prime of his career and would no doubt look at Gus and see a broken man who had no choice. Of course there is more to his life than football, but you can just tell how much football means to him. Not unlike Gus. 

I think with time and the right support he will be ok. He might never be the same player, but I don’t think he will hang up the boots. It’s all very raw right now, but time really does heal all wounds. Physical and emotional. 

 

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

1 minute ago, whatwhat say what said:

that'd be the mfcss - welcome to the club!

as a long time sufferer, i recognise yr affliction and just want you to know that there's no known cure

it has only gone away for a month, in october 2021, and quickly came back when all the news about dogga signing a long term extension was dismissed in november 2021

Thanks for the invite to the club but I’ll respectfully decline. 😁

I am routinely labelled delusional, unrealistic, overly positive to the point of naïve. I apparently don’t see a downside and love every single person at the MFC. Therefore, the MFCSS Club is not for me.

 I think it’s the exact opposite: if someone who is described as above starts to get this feeling about Tracc, it’s clearly coming from an objective perspective. 

[Mel Bourne 4,389]

5 minutes ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

Thanks Luci. People don’t wanna entertain the mere thought of no Tracc. I don’t want to either. But if folks could just stop and think about the reality of the situation they might see that it is a strong possibility.

 

@whatwhat say what you said I think a player will retire “because of an injury.” This isn’t a garden variety injury. This is next level injury. Tracc almost died.

He needs to get good psychiatric help throughout all of this. Ideally not club-appointed, so he can process freely. 

And maybe he can seek some comfort in the law of averages. 400-odd AFL players (and thousands in lesser leagues) risk what happened to Trac, happening to them every weekend. If something similar happened to him again he would be one of the unluckiest dudes to ever lace up. 

 

 

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

1 minute ago, Jaded No More said:

I think with time and the right support he will be ok. He might never be the same player, but I don’t think he will hang up the boots. It’s all very raw right now, but time really does heal all wounds. Physical and emotional. 

 

That’s the thing, Jaded. If he thinks he might never be the same player, and let’s face it: he likely wouldn’t be, then because of his unrivalled standards and dedication, he may decide it’s not something he wants to be.

 I’m with everyone else regarding desperately wanting our best player to recover well and to be out there fit and firing next season. It’s just as Luci calls it, my spidey senses are tingling, and I’m thinking him never playing again is something we should start preparing for, lest that’s the eventual outcome. 

[whatwhat say what 22,086]

5 minutes ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

Thanks for the invite to the club but I’ll respectfully decline. 😁

I am routinely labelled delusional, unrealistic, overly positive to the point of naïve. I apparently don’t see a downside and love every single person at the MFC. Therefore, the MFCSS Club is not for me.

 I think it’s the exact opposite: if someone who is described as above starts to get this feeling about Tracc, it’s clearly coming from an objective perspective. 

the minute you get a 'vibe' that something bad is going to happen, yr already in 

[Lucifers Hero 38,962]

4 minutes ago, Mel Bourne said:

He needs to get good psychiatric help throughout all of this. Ideally not club-appointed, so he can process freely. 

And maybe he can seek some comfort in the law of averages. 400-odd AFL players (and thousands in lesser leagues) risk what happened to Trac, happening to them every weekend. If something similar happened to him again he would be one of the unluckiest dudes to ever lace up.

It won't need to be something similar or as serious.  A small knock in the back could rupture the spleen again.

[Lucifers Hero 38,962]

17 minutes ago, whatwhat say what said:

that'd be the mfcss - welcome to the club!

as a long time sufferer, i recognise yr affliction and just want you to know that there's no known cure

it has only gone away for a month, in october 2021, and quickly came back when all the news about dogga signing a long term extension was dismissed in november 2021

I have to go to bat for @WalkingCivilWar who is the most positive poster we have ever seen on DL and definitely not one who ever shows the slightest mfcss.

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

7 minutes ago, whatwhat say what said:

the minute you get a 'vibe' that something bad is going to happen, yr already in 

Geez you might wanna review your standards for membership. I get one negative vibe and I’m in??? I wouldn’t last five minutes in your club. Y’all would boot me out the second I say let’s all get behind Jack Billings!!! For example 😁

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

14 minutes ago, Mel Bourne said:

He needs to get good psychiatric help throughout all of this. Ideally not club-appointed, so he can process freely. 

And maybe he can seek some comfort in the law of averages. 400-odd AFL players (and thousands in lesser leagues) risk what happened to Trac, happening to them every weekend. If something similar happened to him again he would be one of the unluckiest dudes to ever lace up. 

 

 

Make no mistake: it would affect the way he plays. It’s a perfectly human reaction, unconsciously or not. 

[gs77 3,915]

56 minutes ago, whatwhat say what said:

this is all very mfcss with the 'he's going to retire'

i mean, it's 50/50 really, isn't it? either he will or he won't

i'm presuming come rd 1, 2025, he'll be prowling around the square

Careful here - 50/50 implies the same probability for both outcomes, which is not necessarily the case despite there being two possibilities.

Jakovich will or will not come out of retirement and spearhead our forward line next year - 2 possibilities, not equally probable.

[Chook 14,988]

1 hour ago, whatwhat say what said:

this is all very mfcss with the 'he's going to retire'

i mean, it's 50/50 really, isn't it? either he will or he won't

i'm presuming come rd 1, 2025, he'll be prowling around the square

By that logic it's a 100% chance. He can't both retire and not retire. Only one outcome will take place ergo 100%.

[No. 31 1,064]

54 minutes ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

Even if he did continue playing, he’ll never be the same again in terms of fearlessly going in hard, etc. Regardless of what people wanna believe, the psychological damage is way harder to overcome than the physical damage.

Initially I would expect that, overtime that should subside as he reverts to the old Trac.

But ultimately, only time will tell and different people cope differently to the challenges they face.

[whatwhat say what 22,086]

42 minutes ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

Geez you might wanna review your standards for membership. I get one negative vibe and I’m in??? I wouldn’t last five minutes in your club. Y’all would boot me out the second I say let’s all get behind Jack Billings!!! For example 😁

it starts somewhere...

[DeeZone 8,940]

1 hour ago, ElDiablo14 said:

I have enough hearing this from colleagues at work, delusional filth supporters 🤷🏻‍♂️.

Collingwood is the be all end all according to them, the cornucopia of football. 🤢🤢🤢

More like the handers out of damaged and ruined football careers.😪

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

3 minutes ago, whatwhat say what said:

it starts somewhere...

… so does a nasty rash. Then you liberally apply the relevant ointment and it’s gone. 😁

[bobby1554 1,230]

4 hours ago, Pipefitter said:

The interview came across as not wanting to throw anyone under the bus as well as not just blatantly lying either. There is some hurt there no doubt .

Totally disagree. I think he blames himself for going back out there, mentioned numerous times "I'm a competitor......wanting to be with his teammates.....hindsight is a wonderful thing" Stop reading into it things that aren't there

[drysdale demon 4,686]

2 hours ago, Neil Crompton said:

Does anyone think, from that interview, that Tracc might decide to hang up his boots?

No.

[DeeZone 8,940]

After watching the 360 interview you can clearly see that Tracc has realised the enormity of his injury and how much more serious it could have become. A life threatening injury would have to challenge his air of invincibility does he walk away or become a bit more circumspect and not put himself at such risk during the game, as Lachie Neale mentioned be more aware of the dangers around you and take the appropriate steps to lessen the risks. I am hoping that Tracc plays on but will happily accept his choices.❤️💙

[Little Goffy 13,977]

That moment when you realise you are an actual 'do your own research' professional. Caveat; I am aware this is merely desktop-based meta-research, not actual research. Also the coffee I had while doing it was far too sweet which definitely affected productivity. Bleh.

A sample of some of my reading is below, but here's the 'Things I learned' headlines;

- Petracca's injury was as bad as a spleen injury gets, short of requiring removal. Most common discussed cases were grade 3, Petracca's was a grade 5, which is the maximum in the scale.

- Even a total splenectomy does not mean the end of career or loss of performance for high-level athletes.

- Spleen injuries often go unnoticed because they are frequently masked by the much more evident symptoms of much more common injuries such as rib fractures and general 'having your gut smashed around' symptoms.

- Spleens heal. It is normal for spleen injury management (other than splenectomy) to aim for full return to health.

- Follow-up imaging can confidently assess the level of healing and any ongoing risks, ensuring that return-to-play is not premature.

- The initial treatment experience is often a real [censored]-chewer for the patient and loved ones, primarily due to infection control isolation, as well as persistent psychologically exhausting symptoms which can even include a physical sensation of 'my blood isn't right'.

 

Random sample of readings;

Young rugby union player with a grade 3 spleen injury - which seems to be the most common. Initial 3 months on light duties only, then another 3 months was added after a further scan showed imperfect healing progress. Eventually made full recovery and returned to representative football (well, Rugby Union).

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/42389949_High_Grade_splenic_rupture_in_an_elite_Rugby_Union_player

 

A short case report from an awareness raising program for sports medics. A spleen injury that was not noticed or suspected at the time of incidence. Not a surgical intervention, which appears to be quite a common decision if the internal bleeding can be managed.

https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/researchday/2015/events/28/

 

Case study of a pair of grade 3 splenic lacerations, again, in Ice Hockey. Suggests that with appropriate regular re-imaging to verify the full healing of the spleen, return to play can be much sooner (2 months in these grade 3 cases) than current management assumptions.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/231215796_Splenic_Lacerations_and_Return_to_Play_Case_Report_of_2_Professional_Hockey_Players

 

A report from 2014 about the then uncertainty regarding spleen injury imaging and the like. 3 months light activity only, then gradual return to full activity. Incredibly, it even notes that "high level athletes may choose splenectomy for a faster return to play". I'm so glad we aren't American.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1941738114528468

 

Speaking of splenectomy; an article on top level Ice Hockey athletes' careers following spleen removal;

https://www.denverpost.com/2011/01/17/loss-of-spleen-doesnt-stop-avs-hunwick-other-athletes/

[gs77 3,915]

1 hour ago, Chook said:

By that logic it's a 100% chance. He can't both retire and not retire. Only one outcome will take place ergo 100%.

Schrodinger's Trac?

[Superunknown 4,056]

7 minutes ago, gs77 said:

Schrodinger's Trac?

Oh, that’s very, very good.

 

 

 

I think he’ll be back next year. 
 

[censored] I hate Collingwood. Hate. 

[WalkingCivilWar 39,256]

29 minutes ago, bobby1554 said:

Totally disagree. I think he blames himself for going back out there, mentioned numerous times "I'm a competitor......wanting to be with his teammates.....hindsight is a wonderful thing" Stop reading into it things that aren't there

Same could be said for what you’re doing, no?