Nicholas
17-10-2006, 06:24 PM
Brumbies No.8 Jone Tawake has had the ring finger on his right hand amputated in a drastic bid to keep alive his dream of playing in next year's rugby union World Cup.
The Fijian backrower initially dislocated the finger during the Super 14 season while playing against the Blues in Auckland in March.
He originally underwent surgery to hold the finger into place and repair the damaged joint, but developed an infection.
Despite undergoing treatment, the infection began to destroy the joint with the amputation performed in Canberra last week, removing Tawake's finger from the middle knuckle.
Tawake said the decision was made after lengthy consultation with medical staff, his family and Brumbies management.
"It was a big decision," said Tawake, who is expected to resume full training in six weeks.
"I thought about my rugby future, especially with my history of injuries, and I couldn't afford to have any more time off.
"With the World Cup next year, I wanted to give myself every chance [of being there] and to do that I needed a good pre-season.
"I spoke to the surgeon and [Brumbies physiotherapist] Ed [Hollis] and Waz [Brumbies team doctor Warren McDonald] and they all told me to go away and think about it. But they said that whatever I chose they would support me 100 per cent.
"It [the finger] was very painful and it was very frustrating because it wasn't getting better.
"Since it's been cut off I just feel relieved. There's no doubt in my mind that I've made the right decision."
The 24-year-old has since taken inspiration from AFL and West Coast Eagles star Daniel Chick who had the ring finger on his left hand amputated after suffering a recurrent dislocation in 2002.
Chick went on to complete every match for Hawthorn that season and was one of the best for the Eagles in their premiership win in September.
"I didn't really know about him [Chick] at the time," Tawake said.
"But it's positive that Daniel Chick's shown that you can get on with your football career after going through something like this. If he can do it, then I know that I can do it too."
McDonald said amputation proved to be the most effective alternative.
"One option was to clean out the infection and allow the joint to fuse itself," he said.
"However, this would've left him with a stiff joint. Another option was to fuse the joint together with wire, but again, there was no guarantee that this would solve the problem.
"The finger was very painful for Jone and he enquired, and later requested, to take it off.
"While he will be left with a minor deformity, it will allow for an accelerated recovery and a quicker return to the elite level. If everything goes as expected, we dont foresee any further complications."
Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher said he hopes the surgery would allow Tawake to return to a trouble-free lifestyle.
"Jones has had a regular stream of injuries throughout his career," Fisher said.
"He's a wonderful player who obviously wants to maximise his opportunities and to do that he needs to consistently spend time on the training field and the playing field."
The Fijian backrower initially dislocated the finger during the Super 14 season while playing against the Blues in Auckland in March.
He originally underwent surgery to hold the finger into place and repair the damaged joint, but developed an infection.
Despite undergoing treatment, the infection began to destroy the joint with the amputation performed in Canberra last week, removing Tawake's finger from the middle knuckle.
Tawake said the decision was made after lengthy consultation with medical staff, his family and Brumbies management.
"It was a big decision," said Tawake, who is expected to resume full training in six weeks.
"I thought about my rugby future, especially with my history of injuries, and I couldn't afford to have any more time off.
"With the World Cup next year, I wanted to give myself every chance [of being there] and to do that I needed a good pre-season.
"I spoke to the surgeon and [Brumbies physiotherapist] Ed [Hollis] and Waz [Brumbies team doctor Warren McDonald] and they all told me to go away and think about it. But they said that whatever I chose they would support me 100 per cent.
"It [the finger] was very painful and it was very frustrating because it wasn't getting better.
"Since it's been cut off I just feel relieved. There's no doubt in my mind that I've made the right decision."
The 24-year-old has since taken inspiration from AFL and West Coast Eagles star Daniel Chick who had the ring finger on his left hand amputated after suffering a recurrent dislocation in 2002.
Chick went on to complete every match for Hawthorn that season and was one of the best for the Eagles in their premiership win in September.
"I didn't really know about him [Chick] at the time," Tawake said.
"But it's positive that Daniel Chick's shown that you can get on with your football career after going through something like this. If he can do it, then I know that I can do it too."
McDonald said amputation proved to be the most effective alternative.
"One option was to clean out the infection and allow the joint to fuse itself," he said.
"However, this would've left him with a stiff joint. Another option was to fuse the joint together with wire, but again, there was no guarantee that this would solve the problem.
"The finger was very painful for Jone and he enquired, and later requested, to take it off.
"While he will be left with a minor deformity, it will allow for an accelerated recovery and a quicker return to the elite level. If everything goes as expected, we dont foresee any further complications."
Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher said he hopes the surgery would allow Tawake to return to a trouble-free lifestyle.
"Jones has had a regular stream of injuries throughout his career," Fisher said.
"He's a wonderful player who obviously wants to maximise his opportunities and to do that he needs to consistently spend time on the training field and the playing field."