Forward Taylor Walker says he sustained his season-ending knee injury after “losing awareness” of his foot positioning in an aerial contest against Carlton last weekend.
Walker ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament and damaged the lateral aspect of his right knee as a result of an awkward landing in the first quarter at the MCG. As the 23-year-old moved across to try to intercept a kick-in, his right foot became planted causing him to “catapult” and put enormous stress on his knee joint.
He said he didn’t realise the extent of his injury at the time.
“I was expecting to get body (contact) and I didn’t. As funny as it sounds, you can lose awareness of where you’re feet are. I hit the ground and catapulted a bit, it was like I was on a trampoline,” Walker told The Footy Show on Thursday night.
“There was excruciating pain at first, but then I got up and thought I’d be fine.
“I was assessed by the surgeon and, unfortunately, got the worst news possible.”
Walker is determined to turn his 12-month lay-off into a positive. He appeared on the Footy Show to launch a campaign, in which he will try to raise $50,000 for the Leukaemia Foundation. If Walker achieves his target, he’ll go into the Footy Show studios and allow Sam Newman to cut off his trademark mullet – or mulle’ as he calls it.
To donate please visit www.worldsgreatestshave.com/tex or phone 1800 500 088
Walker was inspired to launch the campaign by Lilly – a five-year-old girl who suffers Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. Walker met Lilly through his work with the Crows Foundation. The Leukaemia Foundation is the principal charity partner of the Foundation in 2013.
“It’s a tough time for myself, but I always try to put a positive spin on things,” he said.
“I met Lily, a five-year-old girl who was diagnosed with Leukaemia five months ago. I was very lucky to meet her. My knee injury is nothing compared to what kids like Lilly are going through.”
The ‘Mullet Over’ campaign raised in excess of $25,000 for the Leukaemia Foundation on Thursday night. Walker’s actions are a reflection of his tremendous character in a time of personal difficulty.
As well as launching ‘Mullet Over’, the young star has also spread his positive message around the Adelaide Football Club. Crows coach Brenton Sanderson said he’d been impressed with Walker’s response to adversity.
“I’ve been really amazed by Tex the past few days. It’s a real credit to him, as a young player, the way he’s handled it. Although, he’s disappointed he’s been really positive around the place already,” Sanderson said.
“He’s almost our barometer in the change rooms. He’s the one who gets us up. I’m sure practical jokes will be at an all-time high with him on the sidelines. He’s just a real character.”
Walker will have surgery to repair his injured knee next week and has earmarked a coaching role for his stint on the sidelines. But his main focus will be on rehabilitation, and ensuring he’s back ready to fire in 2014.
“We’ll get Tex doing some opposition analysis stuff when he’s ready,” Sanderson said.
“Tex will be back. He’s got another seven or eight good years ahead of him. The next game he plays will be at Adelaide Oval, which will be something for him to look forward to. It’s a setback a lot of players have had to go through during their careers.
“There’s no reason he can’t bounce back and be an even better player than what he was.”
