Worst Football Injury You’ve Suffered?

[Larrakeyah Hammer]

Considering I played for teams from aged 8 through to 36
I was lucky

Broken nose aged 14 going up for a header & deliberately elbowed in the face

I then broke my hand aged 36 & that was when I gave up
I just fell awkwardly

I played Aussie Rules for two years in early 2000’s during that year broke 3 fingers over time

Luckily never had a serious knee or ankle injury
Just a few niggles like strains etc

[The Collector]

Double fracture of my left wrist when playing a "friendly" London vs Manchester work game. Mrs Collector banned me from playing after that. "You're too f***ing old!!", or words to that effect.

[Pop Robson]

Completely snapped my rectus femoris thigh muscle 10yrs ago, kicking a ball with my left leg immediately after waking up on holiday after 3 lunchtime pints and straight away demonstrating how to kick with you left peg to my young cousin.

NHS surgeon said I still had good muscle in my skinny legs and but if I had the operation the recovery would be long and hard work, so I never got it fixed. Which mean the muscle is at the top of my leg and can bloody still hurt if I swing my leg over say a fence or a lady.

This year I thought I try over 50s walking football on day 2 of a long planned 5 week holiday after key hole surgery, the wife joked don't get injured. I came back with rupture in the right rectus femoris of 5cm by 1cm and sadly it's not healing great.

I blame lack of advice from the Spanish consultant and me carrying on with the holiday, then not seeing a physio back here for 2 weeks once home

Other than that surgery on my left knee 35 yrs ago again football . I blame my skinny legs and lack of warming up.

Probably going to retire from football, but did enjoy the first 20 mins of the walking football

[DublinDave]

Football, broken nose.
Rugby, fractured my C4 & C5 vertebrae, (i was 12 so healed quickly), 3 broken noses & a broken little finger.
Skiing, broken thumb.

[OFT]

Rejection
That was wounding

[S-H]

Flipping the question, has anyone ever intentionally or unintentionally injured an opponent?

[AG67]

Damaged my medial ligament twice playing football, both block tackles. Right knee both times.
Did my ligament again falling off my bike, smacked my knee off the bike frame. Was a bit sore and bruised for a few days, but didn’t think much of it until it started to hurt like hell 2 or 3 months later. Went for an X Ray and I had a hairline fracture in my kneecap in addition to the ligament injury. Right knee again.

[norse]

Flipping the question, has anyone ever intentionally or unintentionally injured an opponent?

Broke the collar bone of the oppositions CB aged 14 or 15, going for the ball. He was much taller than me, so I probably went in too hard, it was a local derby. Then the next day I broke my arm and met him at the hospital.

No serious injuries playing football for me.

[djclipz]

I was generally quite good in this regard for years and years. Had a bit of a niggling knee but not much else. Then I teared my left quad muscle playing indoor football. Excruciating pain... Or at least I thought it was until I did it a second time after coming back too soon. The feeling I could only describe as fire inside my leg. I couldn't really walk for a week and then just turned into limping mess for a long while afterwards. It also turned black in colour. Even now years later I can still feel where the muscle repaired itself, an odd lump sticking out.

[Up the Junction]

My father ran a team once in which the GK broke his neck. And no, it wasn't Bert Trautmann... This one didn't carry on playing.

[Happyhammer52]

My father ran a team once in which the GK broke his neck. And no, it wasn't Bert Trautmann... This one didn't carry on playing.

Players are a lot softer these days.

Only bad one I had was a broken arm when I was 15 in school. Playing last man back, and a lad took a shot which I put my arm out to save. As soon as it hit my arm I knew I was in trouble. Instantly felt sick and a bit dizzy. Played on for a couple minutes before taking a seat. Then the pain set in. What was a slight positive, the lad who took the shot went on to have a pretty decent career in fact he is still playing in the second tier in America. Won a Scottish Championship trophy and the Scottish Cup before moving to the States.

[Denzil]

I've broken both arms (not at the same time) and put a tooth through my lip, the life of a centre half. Although one broken arm was when I went in goal one game when our GK got injured.

However the worst injury I ever had was a grade 3 high ankle sprain, that also included a broken bone in my foot and damaged Achilles tendon. But it was the sprain that got me. Fairly innocuous challenge. Both went up for a header, I got nudged mid-air and landed on the side of my foot rather than the bottom. I've rolled my ankles plenty of times but taking 14.5 stone on the side of my foot was not something I'd felt before. I heard the crunch, felt the pain, was expecting to look down and see the foot pointing the other way. Thankful it wasn't, but the pain was severe. It blew up and went blue within five mins and I couldn't put any weight on it at all.

It was the aftermath that was the worst part. Crutches for a month and the ski boot for another six weeks after. The pain I had every morning for the first three weeks or so I have never experienced before. It reduced me to tears a couple of mornings, as I got up and the blood rushed to my foot after having it elevated all night. Still get issues with it now and not played properly since.

[Cockneyboy311]

Ruptured spleen about 9 years ago. Elbow right on the money (unintentional obvs). Played the rest of the first half thinking maybe I had cracked a rib. Said at half time i cant run so i went in goal 2nd half. Even made a decent save

I would say around 1hr 45m after it happened and I got home is when i really started to feel unwell. Wife drove me to the hospital and within an hour i was having emergency surgery. The pain was horrendous. i retired for a year, then came back and played 2 more seasons (with a protective top) and then finally retired. Have thought about over 45 vets footy but i work 6 days a week currently so it's not viable.

[Cockneyboy311]

Flipping the question, has anyone ever intentionally or unintentionally injured an opponent?

Sort of. Played this team called Merchant and they had an absolute loony playing for them. First 5 mins he took me out and deliberately stamped on my foot. About 10-15 mins later there was a 50/50 ball with this twat and I absolutely steamed after the ball and just smashed it as hard as i could. He ducked out the challenge. If he hadn't we might have both ended up in A&E.

Anyway, we won 1-0, and this meant they didn't win the league. It was ****ing beautiful at full time with them all arguing with each other especially matey boy who got subbed off before he got sent off.

[hammerheadjim]

Shattered my ankle inside and out from a 50/50 tackle around 13 years ago. Plates and pins put in. Surgeons snapped the drill whilst playing operation on me. Was told they left it in as it was safer than digging around for it and possibly doing extra damage. Ankle does balloon at times. Did play for another 7 years.

[Whitters]

Worst one I've 'caused' was playing 5-a-side with one of those soft skinned indoor balls. I was in goal and an attacker was through on goal. He took a shot, I saved it with my knee and it bounced back, hit his hand in the 'perfect' place and his wrist bone broke straight across in two places. His hand was hanging off almost at a right angle

I felt so guilty, even if it couldn't be more innocuous and blameless, I drove him to hospital.