Justin Koschitzke

[Kildonan]

Fractured skull for Kosi
7 May 2006
Ashley Browne
Sportal for afl.com.au

Star-crossed St Kilda ruckman Justin Koschitzke has a fractured skull and will miss up to six weeks of football.

The star Saint was playing just his second match for the season after recovering from a corked thigh but was knocked unconscious during the third term at Telstra Dome on Saturday after a hard, but fair clash of heads with Bulldog Daniel Giansiracusa.

Koschitzke regained consciousness as he was being carried from the ground and gave a thumbs-up to the crowd, which raised hopes of a quick recovery and even a chance to play against Geelong at Telstra Dome on Friday night.

However, hopes of a quick recovery were dashed by Sunday's medical assessment. The 2001 AFL Rising Star winner played only 10 of 23 matches in 2005 and the best case in 2006 is that he will feature in little more than half of his club's matches.

 

[Axcellence]

Gone for 6-8 weeks .. + more to get back into match fitness.

 

[person077]

poor guy

 

[Kildonan]

I will never forget the moment that Kosi gave the thumbs up signal when he was being stetched off in reponse to the cheers from the St.Kilda faithful.

Gave me a tingle down the back of the neck and tears in my eyes and was to me symbolic of what it is to be a St.Kilda supporter.....

Just said so much more than any words about courage and was almost a "carry on boys just do it... I am with you in spirit"

Almost intuitively, I knew we were going to be hard to beat after that...


A lasting memory and one that I want a photo of behind the bar with the words

"Often down ...Never beaten"

This courageous kid deserves a break from here on....

I know that I felt a great deal of relief.
Then there was that surge of adrenaline - to get on with the job of winning.
I'm sure the boys out there felt similar emotions.

That thumbs up does eptomise the StKilda spirit; often down but never beaten.

Kosi's had (more than) his dose of bad luck, let's hope that the rest of his career is free of this sort of thing.

 

[Kildonan]

Riewoldt shattered for Kosi
8 May 2006
Paul Gough
Sportal for afl.com.au

Nick Riewoldt admits he is shattered at the latest injury to hit champion St Kilda big man Justin Koschitzke.

Koschitzke suffered a fractured skull in a sickening head clash with Western Bulldogs forward Daniel Giansiracusa on Saturday at Telstra Dome - the injury taking the gloss of the Saints' much-needed 14-point victory.

The star big man, who has already missed 48 matches through injury in the past five years and has played just 53 games since winning the 2001 NAB AFL Rising Star award, is expected to miss six weeks with his latest injury.

Riewoldt said it was so disappointing to see Koschitzke suffer yet another serious injury just as he had returned to the side, following a quad strain which he suffered in his only other game this year against Port Adelaide in round four, after he missed the first three games of the season with patella tendonitis.

"There is not a lot you can say," Riewoldt said of Koschitzke's latest setback.

"He works tremendously hard to get himself in a position to play … I am shattered for him.

"Hopefully it's not too bad for him and he recovers quickly."

While the incident provoked a push and shove match between the two teams after Giansiracusa had got back to his feet, Riewoldt said there was nothing untoward about the incident.

"From what I saw it looked pretty fair, it was just one of those unfortunate things that happen," Riewoldt said.

The injury is the latest in a long list of setbacks to hit Koschitzke, who missed 18 games with a back injury in 2002 and 11 games last year (including both the Saints' finals appearances) due to hamstring and quad injuries.

But when he is fit, Koschitzke is easily the Saints' most important player as he showed in the middle of last year when he wracked up 94 possessions, 48 marks, 53 hit-outs, 19 goals and 11 Brownlow votes in a devastating five game burst.

Now the Saints will have to confront a Geelong side desperate for a win on Friday night at Telstra Dome without Koschitzke and Riewoldt knows just what a huge challenge that will be.

The Cats, premiership favourites earlier in the season when they won their first two games by huge margins after winning the NAB Cup, have lost their past four games and find themselves in the same must-win situation the Saints themselves were in prior to Saturday's match against the Bulldogs.

"It seems every week we are coming up against a side that is under pressure and that is the case with Geelong this week," Riewoldt said.

"We have been in a similar boat ourselves and we have got a lot of respect for Geelong and we have had some great battles with them in recent times."

 

[scottydeewah]

I tell you what as much as i want to beat you guys this week and as much as I think he would tear the competition a new one. I would love to see this bloke up and firing. This injury is just BULLSHIAT of the highest order. Could be the best player in the comp or close to it and this is just crap. Poor bloke and good luck to him.