Cronulla prop Andrew Fifita has spoken out on the horrific throat injury that very well nearly took his life.
The former Wests Tigers player sustained the injury in his Round 22 clash with the Knights after a stray elbow struck him in the throat, forcing him off.
Despite not initially being rushed to hospital, post-game Fifita complained his throat was closing up and was having difficulty breathing before his condition deteriorated even further.
The 32-year-old veteran was placed in an induced coma upon arrival at the Royal Brisbane Hospital where surgery was performed to save Fifita's life.
However, it's only last night that Fifita opened up on the horrors he endured off the back of his fractured larynx, speaking to Channel 9's Danny Weidler.
"I ended up getting the doc, I said 'doc I need your phone'. He said 'what?' and I was like 'I really need your phone'," he said on Nine News.
"I ended up writing a nice text to my missus (saying) how much I love her.
"I honestly didn't think I was going to make it there."
Laryngeal fracturing is a rare condition that can lead to many long term effects if left untreated, however thankfully Fifita was able to make a recovery.
Despite Fifita returning to full health, the details of the injury described to him by his specialist underlined how close the star was to death.
"They ended up cutting my neck. He said (if they did it) a minute later I would have died," he said.
"Then they realised they clipped an artery in my neck, and I was bleeding all through my lungs, so I was drowning in my own blood.
"It's taken a long time to process it and I'm still not through it. When you sit in front of a doctor and he tells you, 'four times I went home at night, Andrew, and didn't think you were going to make it'… it's one of those things."
The forward had an injury-plagued season 2020 and 2021 was much of the same, with the 32-year-old managing to play six games prior to his throat injury.
His 2021 off-season was also reportedly a rough experience with sacked Sharks coach John Morris telling the veteran that he should retire before the season started.
Fifita has had a successful 12 seasons in rugby league, including 10 seasons at Cronulla with the prop tasting the ultimate success in 2016 as the Sharks won their maiden premiership.
The New South Welshman also has represented both Tonga and the Blues on 10 occasions each, retiring from the former in 2019.
It's not clear whether Fifita will elect to play on in 2022 with the forward still contracted to the Sharks for next season, but it will be a noble effort if he manages to pull on the blue jersey again for one last year.