I thought I had died': Panther To'o reveals pre-season mishap
Penrith's Brian To'o can only remember waking up at the bottom of a sandhill with his Panthers teammates panicking and pouring ice water all over him.
To'o was lumping a sandbag downhill at Wanda before Christmas when he blacked out. Not only did he pass out from dehydration, To'o gave himself concussion when the heavy sandbag he carried landed flush on the back of his head.
The 21-year-old ended up spending two days in Sutherland Hospital hooked up to a heart monitor and regularly checked for kidney damage.
Panthers officials took it easy with To'o for the following couple of weeks, and even relegated him to waterboy duties during the club's three-day army camp on the outskirts of Brisbane before Christmas.
While there is always the story of an NRL player who pushes himself too hard during the summer, To'o went further than most.
"I thought I had died when I was in the hospital and I was like, 'what am I doing here?'," To'o told
The Sun-Herald. "Even when I say Wanda now, it gets me every time.
"It was a Friday session, it was the last session of the week, and we went over to Wanda on a hot day.
"We were doing these hill runs, we had three teams, and one player from each team would carry a sandbag up the hill, then the next player would bring it back down.
"I was the last player in my team and as I was bringing the sandbag down, I started to feel a bit dazed and went cross-eyed. The next minute I remember waking up and all the boys were pouring water on me.
"Something like that had never happened to me before. It was confusing.
"I was taken to Sutherland Hospital, they put me on an oxygen machine and kept me there for two days. I was rattled and struggled to keep my eyes open.
"Because I was on a drip and my heart was being monitored, I couldn't shower until the doctor gave me the tick. So for two days every time they went to take my temperature, I'd end up covered in sand and sand would end up all over the sheets.
"All I wanted was a shower. The sand kept reminding me of Wanda. I'm actually scared just to look at sand now."
Some Panthers officials watched To'o hit the deck, only for him to try and get up and run again. Club medico Craig Catterick was on the spot to treat To'o and immediately realised the need to get him to a hospital.
When he was able to pick up the phone and call his parents and partner, To'o expected some sympathy and concern. However, he said he copped an earful for not taking better care of himself.
To'o's scare evoked memories of the day Adam Dykes needed to be air-lifted to hospital after a tough dunes session with Parramatta on the Central Coast.
To'o burst on to the NRL scene last year and quickly won over the Panthers faithful with his rolling try celebrations.
The pint-sized Samoan, who is one of the many Penrith juniors at the club, scored nine tries in 15 NRL games and was crowned the club's Ben Alexander rookie of the year.
To'o said he had not been spooked when it came to over-exerting himself, and if anything was keen to push himself hard to lock down the right wing spot outside Dean Whare.
There was a noticeable scar above To'o's left eyebrow this week and when
The Sun-Herald asked if that was a result of his tumble, he quipped: "That's from all the wrestling with the boys. All the boys are jealous of how handsome I am. They get pretty brutal."
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/i-...eveals-pre-season-mishap-20200131-p53wor.html
