Australian Football Player Gary Rohan Returns to Practice 1 Week After Emergency Surgery for Fractured Skull

The 33-year-old footballer needed emergency surgery after taking an elbow to the head during a matchup last weekend

Gary Rohan is making a strong case for the argument that Australian rules football is one of the toughest sports out there.

The 33-year-old footballer made a stunning return to practice on Monday, one week after he suffered a fractured skull from an accidental elbow during a recent match in the Victorian Football League, the second-tier division for the Australian Football League.

Though the Geelong Cats star has already been ruled out of his AFL team’s semifinal match on Saturday against the Brisbane Lions, Rohan was spotted on the sidelines at GMHBA Stadium doing ball drills with his teammates and sporting more than 30 stitches across his shaved head, The Western Australian and 7News reported.

Rohan’s gruesome looking scar goes ear-to-ear over the top of his head, which was partly shaved during his emergency surgery last weekend in order for doctors to put the stitches in his skull.

7News reported last weekend that Rohan was rushed to the hospital after taking what the outlet described as a “glancing blow” to the head.

The outlet’s sports reporter Andrew McCormack told 7News that Rohan was first taken to the medical room inside the stadium where “it was pretty clear straight away that he failed that concussion test.”

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Rohan shared a selfie from his hospital bed last weekend, alongside his wife Madi Rohan, whom he married in Dec. 2022.

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“Not the place I had planned to spend my weekend,” Rohan wrote in the post’s caption. “Scans have confirmed a fractured skull but I am doing well and in the best hands. Now just waiting on surgery. Thank you for all of the messages and well wishes.”

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The injury Rohan suffered could spell the end of his decorated AFL career, according to several reports. Both 7News and Fox Sports report that the veteran forward, who’s known on the field for his speed, does not currently have a contract in line to play next season.

Rohan first debuted in the AFL in 2010, playing nine seasons with the Sydney Swans before he was traded to the Cats before the 2019 season. Throughout his career, Rohan has scored 215 goals in 200 games.

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