Play Nice Majak Daw in hospital after jumping from the Bolte bridge

John Who

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Hey guys. Good news on this. The Age is reporting that Majak will gain full mobility should the surgery be a success. He is apparently having surgery to fractures on only his Pelvis, which is a good sign because if the spine was mentioned.. that would be the end of his football career. An injured Pelvis is recoverable. No mention of surgery on his hips or anywhere else.

So people stating he will be in a wheelchair, and never play again.... this is rubbish. Most injuries outside the Spine or Brain are fully recoverable.... if sportspeople can snap their leg in half (Nathan Brown, Paul George) and recover, then surely a Pelvis can recover in the same way even from some heavy damage.

Here's to one of the greatest comebacks of all time in the near future.
This is genuine great news for Majak! I just want to clarify the report in above post.

How recoverable the pelvic injury is depends on the extent of damage to the pelvis. It’s a lot different in healing potential if it’s a simple hairline fracture as opposed to multiple fractures requiring many pins and screws.

Also, there’s 2 types of “recovery”:
1. To walk again and do normal daily activities.
2. To play footy again.
There’s a good chance surgery can help option 1 in the above, but no guarantees option 2 will happen. People need to stop thinking surgeries are absolute successes.

I do wish Majak all the success in the world for physical and mental healing. Whether he plays again is irrelevant in the whole scheme of things. On reflecting, he is a player of great potential. More importantly though, he has helped to build multiculturalism to AFL and could hopefully bring more gifted athletes from other countries into our game.
 
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Not commenting on Daw’s case in particular as I know nothing of the details of his injuries or prognosis but history is littered with athletes who have suffered career ending, non spinal injuries (Jarryd Allen from the Saints springs to mind immediately along with Matt Egan and Trent Croad).
Trent Hentschell
 

Ancient Tiger

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This is genuine great news for Majak! I just want to clarify the report in above post.

How recoverable the pelvic injury is depends on the extent of damage to the pelvis. It’s a lot different in healing potential if it’s a simple hairline fracture as opposed to multiple fractures requiring many pins and screws.

Also, there’s 3 types of “recovery”:
1. To walk again and do normal daily activities.
2. To play footy again.
3. To play footy again at an AFL standard.
There’s a good chance surgery can help option 1 in the above, but no guarantees option 2 will happen. People need to stop thinking surgeries are absolute successes.

I do wish Majak all the success in the world for physical and mental healing. Whether he plays again is irrelevant in the whole scheme of things. On reflecting, he is a player of great potential. More importantly though, he has helped to build multiculturalism to AFL and could hopefully bring more gifted athletes from other countries into our game.
EFA
 

Mcgearzz

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Suicides a huge issue among young men. Let’s hope he gets the help he needs
 

TheKanga

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Hey guys. Good news on this. The Age is reporting that Majak will gain full mobility should the surgery be a success. He is apparently having surgery to fractures on only his Pelvis, which is a good sign because if the spine was mentioned.. that would be the end of his football career. An injured Pelvis is recoverable. No mention of surgery on his hips or anywhere else.

So people stating he will be in a wheelchair, and never play again.... this is rubbish. Most injuries outside the Spine or Brain are fully recoverable.... if sportspeople can snap their leg in half (Nathan Brown, Paul George) and recover, then surely a Pelvis can recover in the same way even from some heavy damage.

Here's to one of the greatest comebacks of all time in the near future.

This makes me very happy.
 

My Tilly

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what else was he doing? GOING FOR A SWIM???


idiotic comment


I had only heard of the incident and initially thinking, young footballers with plenty of prev ado, he had been drinking with mates and he had fallen accidentally.

As for your sly comments, do you feel tough having got it off your chest o_O
 

Witch1

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Sep 4, 2016
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This is genuine great news for Majak! I just want to clarify the report in above post.

How recoverable the pelvic injury is depends on the extent of damage to the pelvis. It’s a lot different in healing potential if it’s a simple hairline fracture as opposed to multiple fractures requiring many pins and screws.

Also, there’s 2 types of “recovery”:
1. To walk again and do normal daily activities.
2. To play footy again.
There’s a good chance surgery can help option 1 in the above, but no guarantees option 2 will happen. People need to stop thinking surgeries are absolute successes.

I do wish Majak all the success in the world for physical and mental healing. Whether he plays again is irrelevant in the whole scheme of things. On reflecting, he is a player of great potential. More importantly though, he has helped to build multiculturalism to AFL and could hopefully bring more gifted athletes from other countries into our game.
It's not totally irrelevant in that footy is his livelihood. Realistically, how long can poor Kangas financially support a player with a long-term, non-footy related injury, let alone a self-inflicted one? Even if he does fully recover physically, it will be long and slow. Mental recovery is another matter entirely. Hopefully he's got plenty put aside for a rainy day.
 

Ando727

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I think a club psychologist who is regularly engaging with players, asking how they are personally, and offering coping mechanisms etc would be more successful at supporting players than nothing. Mental illness can be a very lonely place. Someone taking regular interest may be enough to get a few players to open up.
Yes, and I tend to think this is an issue for each club, not the AFL. The AFL is not well-positioned to oversee the mental health of individuals. Clubs are - they know the players personally after all. The most that could be expected from the AFL is to make sure each club has sufficient funds to run an effective mental health program. I think most clubs probably already do run such a program but there are plenty of players who will try to avoid such scrutiny. As strong as the campaign has been to treat mental illness in the same stigma-free way we treat any other medical problem, we just aren't there yet. All the more reason to keep plugging away at it within clubland.
 
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It's not totally irrelevant in that footy is his livelihood. Realistically, how long can poor Kangas financially support a player with a long-term, non-footy related injury, let alone a self-inflicted one? Even if he does fully recover physically, it will be long and slow. Mental recovery is another matter entirely. Hopefully he's got plenty put aside for a rainy day.
Heard a tale of a North player that got delisted after suffering 1 injury too many. Still young and North helped pay for a major career course that he still operates in and is forever thankful to North for doing so even though they had no obligation to do so
 

Isaac Cumming No 1

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It's not totally irrelevant in that footy is his livelihood. Realistically, how long can poor Kangas financially support a player with a long-term, non-footy related injury, let alone a self-inflicted one? Even if he does fully recover physically, it will be long and slow. Mental recovery is another matter entirely. Hopefully he's got plenty put aside for a rainy day.
He's contracted to the end of next year. I'd say North's record is patience in these matters. It's a clinical decision if it's best for him to stay in the system. Not one you'd make in a crisis you'd think.
 

Man0gwaR74

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#539 - a stupid face emoji doesn’t erase you having been the first to introduce WHO statistics.

I’ve also lived years in communities where some this data comes from, worked in development and alongside the WHO. Collecting data is challenging, but “entire guesswork” is just an ignorant generalisation.

There are undoubted gaps in data points, more of which will lead to greater inaccuracy (not only re suicide, but mortality rates in general), but the WHO aren’t blind to this and have sophisticated statistical modelling that aids them in generating more representative estimates. Of course closing these data gaps would improve the accuracy of reporting, but that doesn’t mean you just throw WHO estimates out the window.
imo this statement is more of an ignorant generalisation.
 
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Heard a tale of a North player that got delisted after suffering 1 injury too many. Still young and North helped pay for a major career course that he still operates in and is forever thankful to North for doing so even though they had no obligation to do so

If this was under Brad I wouldn't be surprised. He is absolutely massive on making sure players leave the game in a very good position, encourages players to do uni or get certifications while still players because footy simply isn't forever, and if they have that little extra peace of mind with them it should help them both during and after their career.
 

John Who

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It's not totally irrelevant in that footy is his livelihood. Realistically, how long can poor Kangas financially support a player with a long-term, non-footy related injury, let alone a self-inflicted one? Even if he does fully recover physically, it will be long and slow. Mental recovery is another matter entirely. Hopefully he's got plenty put aside for a rainy day.
You're right, it isn't totally irrelevant if he can get back to footy. The point was that he needs to get his mind and body right first, before he contemplates footy again. Need step 1 first before making step 2.
 

John Who

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Yes, and I tend to think this is an issue for each club, not the AFL. The AFL is not well-positioned to oversee the mental health of individuals. Clubs are - they know the players personally after all. The most that could be expected from the AFL is to make sure each club has sufficient funds to run an effective mental health program. I think most clubs probably already do run such a program but there are plenty of players who will try to avoid such scrutiny. As strong as the campaign has been to treat mental illness in the same stigma-free way we treat any other medical problem, we just aren't there yet. All the more reason to keep plugging away at it within clubland.
It's not just an issue within club walls, but a wider public health issue relating to all of us - footy fans, fan forums, media reporting etc.
People also tend to assume just because a person is an AFL player, then the AFL is responsible for their mental wellbeing. The issues are far more complex as he might have been having mental health issues before his AFL career, or for reasons outside of footy (eg. relationships, family, financial).
 

Ando727

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It's not just an issue within club walls, but a wider public health issue relating to all of us - footy fans, fan forums, media reporting etc.
People also tend to assume just because a person is an AFL player, then the AFL is responsible for their mental wellbeing. The issues are far more complex as he might have been having mental health issues before his AFL career, or for reasons outside of footy (eg. relationships, family, financial).
Totally agree wth everything you've said there, John. I was just responding to the idea that some are putting forward that the AFL specifically should have done more or should be doing more. I'm not sure that's the case. I think the clubs are best positioned to help AFL players - or the AFLPA, whom I don't consider to be the AFL, although maybe that's a false distinction I'm making there.
 

John Who

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Totally agree wth everything you've said there, John. I was just responding to the idea that some are putting forward that the AFL specifically should have done more or should be doing more. I'm not sure that's the case. I think the clubs are best positioned to help AFL players - or the AFLPA, whom I don't consider to be the AFL, although maybe that's a false distinction I'm making there.
I’m merely adding more to the discussion and agreeing to what you’re saying. AFL, AFLPA and AFL clubs are all interlinked, so we should be thinking the AFL and clubs as one entity, although the clubs would have direct access to mental health assessments for each individual player. I’m sure clubs use sports psychologists or just general psychologists when there is significant mental traumas occurring at any given time. eg. when a club suddenly loses the life of a coaching staff or a player. Though what should be proposed are more regular checking of mental well-being of players, and players to have more ready access to counselors or psychologists.

In saying this, we should not expect full responsibility of the AFL for the mental welfare of the players. Rather, I think it should be viewed as a workplace scenario, where work is responsible for your general well being whilst at the work environment. With this view, the workers (or players) should be encouraged to have their health checks regularly during their own time and the community as a whole should be encouraged to be more supportive of other’s wellbeing, and GPs to really mean what they ask when they ask “how are you going?”
 

SHAKESPEARE

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If this was under Brad I wouldn't be surprised. He is absolutely massive on making sure players leave the game in a very good position, encourages players to do uni or get certifications while still players because footy simply isn't forever, and if they have that little extra peace of mind with them it should help them both during and after their career.
Brad Scott is a gun.
 
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