How Tyson Frizell’s extremely painful injury changed his outlook

Newcastle Knights striker Tyson Frizell has opened up on the horror injury that changed his NRL career – and the way he thinks about his body.

The Blues and Australia star suffered one of the worst injuries imaginable while playing for the Dragons in their season opener at Townsville in 2019: a ruptured testicle.

Writing exclusively in The athlete’s voiceFrizell detailed the macabre incident with Cowboys guard Jordan Kahu.

“It was the start of the 2019 season, the very first game of the year in North Queensland, and it’s so hot and sweaty this time of year,” the back rower wrote.

“I was going for a kick chase and the fullback jumped up to grab the ball but I timed it wrong as I flew in to make a tackle. He caught a ball well. I ended up with a ruptured testicle.

“We went to the local hospital for a quick MRI and by the time I got there he had grown to the size of a small orange. Fortunately, a surgeon was available and I managed to fix the problem that night.

When you think who has the biggest balls in the NRL – for at least one night, I did.

The injury may be the most painful of his career, but it’s far from the only one. Now a former NRL statesman with over 200 games in the top tier, Frizell has learned a lot about how best to stay fit and ready for the rigors of rugby’s toughest competition in the world.

“When you go out on the court, you have to believe that if you’ve trained and built your body to be as strong as possible, you’re giving yourself the best chance of not getting injured,” he said. . wrote.

“It’s about knowing that you’ve worked to prepare in the most optimal way possible, doing the tough jobs so you know that when you go out on the pitch you can just focus on your best.

“You can ask any player: if you’re not 100% in training, especially in contact, that’s where people get injured because they don’t use the right technique. “

You can read Tyson Frizell’s full article on the voice of the athlete.