‘Nearly made me crook’: Knight’s star’s emergency surgery after freak injury ‘like a shark bite’
Knights backrower Kai Pearce-Paul was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery on Saturday night following an injury that his coach Adam O’Brien has compared to “a shark bite”.
Pearce-Paul went down in the 33rd minute following a tackle after a rogue stud from a teammate split his shin open and caused a 15cm gash.
“I just saw a photo of it then and it nearly made me crook, it’s awful,” O’Brien said in his post-match press conference.
“He’s in surgery now. It’s not like a soft tissue injury or a bone break or anything, but it’s pretty big.
“It’s like a shark bite at the moment, it’s huge.
“He’s at the hospital now.”
Newcastle skipper Kalyn Ponga was on the field when it happened and provided more details on his teammate’s gruesome injury.
The Knights confirmed that Pearce-Paul is confident it was stud rather than a protruding sprinkler head at Accor Stadium.
Fox League sideline reporter Matt Russell covered the game and described the injury as a “wicked gash”.
“His leg flapped open like a hot dog bun,” Russell said.
Newcastle won the clash 36-16 to keep their slim finals hopes alive and remarkably Pearce-Paul is still considered a chance to face the Titans next week.