BARRETT: Battered ‘Trac’ needs demons to save him from himself

Following a violent collision shortly before the quarter-final of Monday’s King’s Birthday match against Collingwood, Christian Petracca was permitted to continue to play. Melbourne officials, who have previously been under fire for a variety of reasons both on and off the field, anxiously navigated a narrative around this decision.

In an interview with Channel Seven at three-quarter time, Demons football department head Alan Richardson attempted to minimize the harm Petracca had suffered. Meanwhile, coach Simon Goodwin, who rarely interacts meaningfully with the media when the microphones and cameras are on, purposefully avoided answering specific questions following the game.

Twenty years of medical research was not necessary to determine that the intense heat of the MCG clash was among the last locations Petracca should have been close following that hit by Darcy Moore.

One of the hardest football players of his generation, Petracca was clearly upset. It was difficult for him to even breathe, as his left upper body side was non-functional. Despite receiving evaluation and treatment, Petracca was still in danger when he returned.

By half-time, he had been ruled out of the match. By the final quarter, he was propped up on an ambulance trolley, ready for transportation to Epworth Hospital, all colour drained from his face as his worried mother sought to offer comfort.

It was discovered at ten in the morning on Tuesday that Moore had undergone surgery after his knee-contact with Petracca had fractured four ribs, punctured a lung, and lacerated his spleen.

It is certain that Petracca bears some responsibility for the sequence of events that led to his return to the MCG on Monday. He replied to a Melbourne Football Club post on Tuesday afternoon on Instagram, explaining his injury: “Im (sic) responsible for putting myself out there by the way for people talking about the medicos.”

The fierce competitor facet of his make-up, combined with the adrenaline of the match, compelled him to try to complete the match. That’s what elite athletes do in combat sports. But there are times when senior people – medicos, coaches, officials – at football clubs need to make decisions in the best interests of the player, not the club. And Monday at MCG was one of those times.

Imagine if, having re-entered play with such severe internal damage, Petracca had been hit by Brayden Maynard, or copped another knee from Moore. One shudders at the potential further damage.

At three-quarter time, Richardson told Channel Seven: “It looks like ribs, he’s pretty sore, we tried a couple of times with some support, we will have to wait for scans … my understanding is he is still here, down in the rooms, and he is OK, other than the fact he just couldn’t get moving. He’s pretty sore, so we will have to get it scanned.”

Following the game, Goodwin stated: “He’s in the hospital, just receiving a scan right now; they believe it may be some cracked ribs. We will provide further details as soon as we have them, but hopefully that is all. The usual procedure for treating these kinds of injuries is to acquire some pain treatment and assess how you can continue, just like with any broken or cracked rib. We pulled it right away at halftime because it was quite obvious he wouldn’t be able to continue. I promise to transmit the information as soon as I obtain it.”

I realise in-match decisions are often made under great stress and duress. The King’s Birthday game was a must-win one for the Demons, whose season was already stalling before Monday. The club was desperate for Petracca’s availability after the Moore hit, and without him, lost another game, its fourth defeat from the past five matches.

Melbourne exposed Petracca to great danger on Monday. It was a bad look, and this was an observation made long before the public revelation of the extent of injuries.