Retiring Wests Tigers great Robbie Farah has been told by doctors not to play again but says he’s prepared to ignore their advice for an NRL swan song.
After suffering a broken leg against Manly a week-and-a-half ago, Farah is facing huge odds to get back on the field one final time before he hangs up his boots at season’s end.
With three games left in the regular season and the Tigers hanging onto their finals hopes by their fingernails, Farah says he has faced up to the possibility he may have played his last game.
After his replacement Jacob Liddle suffered a season-ending ACL tear, the Tigers have been thrust into a dummy-half crisis with out-of-favour playmaker Josh Reynolds set to be recalled to wear the No.9 jersey against Newcastle.
But in a sign of Farah’s determination to turn out for his beloved Tigers one last time, the notoriously stubborn No.9 has vowed: “I won’t die wondering.”
And of the lengths he’ll go to get back on the field, he quipped: “If we’ve got to win to make the semis, I’ll cut it off if I have to.”
While he was full of bravado, he said he was prepared to ignore his doctors’ advice to pull on an orange, white and black jersey one last time.
“At the end of the day it’s my decision but they definitely recommended that (he not play again),” Farah said.
“It’s just a matter of gathering the information from them as best I could and whatever risk I put upon myself is my decision.”
Pressed on whether he risked endangering his long-term health, Farah admitted playing again could result in further injury and him requiring surgery.
“If I do more damage, I’ll need surgery and pins put in,” Farah said.
“At this stage, the fracture’s not displaced so I don’t need surgery, it will heal as is.
“But you risk further damage if I cop another whack on it or get twisted in a certain way.”
Farah has enjoyed a stellar career across 17 seasons, playing 302 NRL games, 16 Origin games for NSW, as well as eight Tests for Australia and another five for Lebanon.
Since breaking his leg he was in a brace up until the weekend and hoped to be off crutches before the end of the week.
If he does get back on the park, it will most likely be at the Tigers’ spiritual home of Leichhardt Oval against Cronulla in the final round.
And said he was prepared to play through the pain of a broken leg to do that.
“If I do get on the field, I’m not going to be 100 per cent,” Farah said.
“It’s something I’m going to have to be willing to risk by getting out there.”