Tyson Frizell insists he had to overcome some mental scars to make an early return from a ruptured testicle, an injury which will require him to wear a cup protector more common for mixed martial arts fighters for the immediate future.
The Australian and NSW forward has told of the excruciating pain which forced him to be rushed into surgery after suffering the unusual injury in the Dragons' season opening loss to the Cowboys.
Cup protector: Tyson Frizell.Credit:AAP
Frizell had seven stitches inserted to treat the injury, but showed no ill effects with a powerhouse display in St George Illawarra's golden point win over Newcastle on Sunday night.
The 27-year-old consulted several other athletes who had been unfortunate enough to suffer the same injury before being told he needed to wear a groin protector in his return for the Dragons.
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"I guess you wear a mouthguard when you get your teeth punched in and when you get knocked in the balls you wear a cup," Frizell joked. "I'll be wearing that for a bit.
"It is a bit weird and it takes some getting used to, but once you get out on the field … if you're going into a game thinking about that you're not giving 100 per cent. It's something a lot of UFC fighters wear.
I guess I'm more protected than the rest of the blokes
Tyson Frizell
"I guess I'm more protected than the rest of the blokes. There's a nice wound there that needed to heal as well to be honest. It did take me a while to even walk properly after a week."
Paul McGregor's decision to give Frizell the nod was a timely boost for a side which now faces an extended period without Korbin Sims, who played for almost 20 minutes with a broken arm against Newcastle.
Frizell stripped Mitchell Pearce under his own goalposts and crashed over for a try just minutes after entering the field in Newcastle, but needed to hurdle some mental demons to play in the first place.
"It was more getting my head right and beingRead More – Source
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