Will Brimson, the older brother of Gold Coast Titans star AJ Brimson, has announced that he has been forced into retirement from rugby league.
Although he never featured in the NRL, Will Brimson had a storied rugby league career in the QLD Cup and various QRL competitions that lasted over 20 years.
This included featuring in the halves and outside backs for the Wynnum-Manly Seagulls before moving to the Tweed Heads Seagulls.
“I choose life,” he told QRL.com.au.
“It was quite difficult to hear. No one wants to finish on those terms. You want to finish on your own accord. It was tough but I did have a good two or three weeks before the specialist meeting to prepare for it.
“It was already circulating in my head because of what people had been telling me so it wasn't a shock. Over the weeks I had come to terms with it, if that's what it was going to mean.
“It definitely sucks. Football has been my life… a massive part of my life for the last 15 to 20 years. But I choose life.
“You have to think about life down the track as well, things like one day starting a family with my partner.
“You do come across people who aren't as fortunate with injury and I want to be able to do everything with my family for a long time.
“There's also work. If you have a really bad injury and you aren't able to work, that's obviously not a good thing. It was a really tough decision but I had to look at the bigger picture.”
“I copped a knock to my head really early in the game and my neck felt like it went,” Brimson added.
“I pushed through to halftime and I got a massage at halftime and I started playing again. I tackled a winger – a diving effort – and I hit my head again. My whole arm was numb.
“I wasn't thinking too much about it but my hand and back of my arm were numb.
“I had to get scans and I was optimistic at the time. I've had a similar injury with nerve pain and I came back in three to four weeks.
“I had a CAT scan and then was sent for an MRI straight away. I was on steroids to bring the feeling back, which helped.
“But from here I was advised to see a neck specialist. It wasn't easy going into that meeting. He told me the bulging disc was pressing on my nerves and it was in my best interest to stop playing.
“It was a no-brainer from there. I'm at more risk if I cop a big knock. If there's a problem with your nerves, your body is telling you that you need to ease up.”