http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...t-through-injury/story-e6frexnr-1225885453764
New Zealand Warriors star Steve Price forced to quit through injury
By Christian Nicolussi
INJURY has robbed international prop Steve Price of the fairytale farewell to NRL he so richly deserved.
Price, who was due to retire at the end of the season, has had to end his 313-game career altogether with a third operation on a painful achilles injury awaiting him on Friday.
Mystery has surrounded the return of the Warriors enforcer, who has not taken the park in 2010, but Price and club doctor John Mayhew yesterday confirmed the grim outlook.
A shattered Price said while he knew an enforced retirement was a possibility, the news would not hit home until he was sitting in a hospital bed this weekend.
"I've tried everything, shock treatment, two operations, cortisones," Price said. "I've also seen spiritual people, but whatever has gone wrong has gone wrong, and the harder I've tried to get back the worse it has become. I'm really disappointed it hasn't worked out the way I've wanted it to, but I am proud to have played as much as I have.
"I'll still help with the Warriors this season, it just won't be in a playing capacity. This year was always going to be my last year.
"I sacrificed last year's Australia [Test] tour to have an operation so I could enjoy my final year here and finish on a high note. I had another operation in January and both times I've come back I've broken down.
"I didn't get to finish at the Dogs the way I would have liked.
"Then I tore my calf the day before the World Cup final, and now this.
"[In saying that] my mindset has gone from wanting to get back on the field to now just wanting to be able to walk properly again."
The father-of-three's achilles has become so painful at times he has struggled to wear closed shoes.
This is the third time injury has kept Price from significant moments in his decorated career.
First a knee injury stopped him from leading the Bulldogs in the 2004 grand final in his last game at the club. Then he broke down with a calf complaint at Kangaroos training on the eve of the 2008 World Cup final.
sRespected Warriors doctor John Mayhew said had it been any other season, Price would have been sidelined entirely, it was just a shame it was his farewell year.
Specialists had been consulted in Australia and the US to solve the problem. Mayhew said the achilles was fine, the problem was where his achilles joined the heel bone.
Former coach Steve Folkes, who made Price captain at the Bulldogs, was disappointed to hear the news and said he had achieved plenty in the game to smile about.
Asked if he was one of the nicest players he had come across in league, Folkes said: "I'll say he's one of the nicest forwards.
"Most players have their good luck and bad luck, but with Steve his bad luck has come at really important times. I still think he can look back on his career and know he's done tremendously well, and he has.
"He injured his knee before the 2004 grand final and he showed selflessness by telling us he couldn't go out there because he wasn't 100 per cent. He's just a real leader, he has the respect of his teammates and always trained hard and looked after himself."
New Zealand Warriors star Steve Price forced to quit through injury
By Christian Nicolussi
INJURY has robbed international prop Steve Price of the fairytale farewell to NRL he so richly deserved.
Price, who was due to retire at the end of the season, has had to end his 313-game career altogether with a third operation on a painful achilles injury awaiting him on Friday.
Mystery has surrounded the return of the Warriors enforcer, who has not taken the park in 2010, but Price and club doctor John Mayhew yesterday confirmed the grim outlook.
A shattered Price said while he knew an enforced retirement was a possibility, the news would not hit home until he was sitting in a hospital bed this weekend.
"I've tried everything, shock treatment, two operations, cortisones," Price said. "I've also seen spiritual people, but whatever has gone wrong has gone wrong, and the harder I've tried to get back the worse it has become. I'm really disappointed it hasn't worked out the way I've wanted it to, but I am proud to have played as much as I have.
"I'll still help with the Warriors this season, it just won't be in a playing capacity. This year was always going to be my last year.
"I sacrificed last year's Australia [Test] tour to have an operation so I could enjoy my final year here and finish on a high note. I had another operation in January and both times I've come back I've broken down.
"I didn't get to finish at the Dogs the way I would have liked.
"Then I tore my calf the day before the World Cup final, and now this.
"[In saying that] my mindset has gone from wanting to get back on the field to now just wanting to be able to walk properly again."
The father-of-three's achilles has become so painful at times he has struggled to wear closed shoes.
This is the third time injury has kept Price from significant moments in his decorated career.
First a knee injury stopped him from leading the Bulldogs in the 2004 grand final in his last game at the club. Then he broke down with a calf complaint at Kangaroos training on the eve of the 2008 World Cup final.
sRespected Warriors doctor John Mayhew said had it been any other season, Price would have been sidelined entirely, it was just a shame it was his farewell year.
Specialists had been consulted in Australia and the US to solve the problem. Mayhew said the achilles was fine, the problem was where his achilles joined the heel bone.
Former coach Steve Folkes, who made Price captain at the Bulldogs, was disappointed to hear the news and said he had achieved plenty in the game to smile about.
Asked if he was one of the nicest players he had come across in league, Folkes said: "I'll say he's one of the nicest forwards.
"Most players have their good luck and bad luck, but with Steve his bad luck has come at really important times. I still think he can look back on his career and know he's done tremendously well, and he has.
"He injured his knee before the 2004 grand final and he showed selflessness by telling us he couldn't go out there because he wasn't 100 per cent. He's just a real leader, he has the respect of his teammates and always trained hard and looked after himself."
