- Albert Hopoate has spoken candidly about his burns ordeal
- Son of football legend John suffered grade two burns
- He says his wife stopped him from being ‘sooky’
The kitchen may be too hot for burns victim Albert Hopoate, but the young NRL star is much more at home on the field.
The 23-year-old Canberra player spoke on Wednesday about the second-degree burns he suffered after a bottle of olive oil caught fire in an oil separator and exploded on his arm.
“There was nothing I could do except just let it heal,” he said.
“The most important thing was to make sure it didn’t get infected.”
The midfielder credits his wife for his resurgence in the Raiders’ first division team after returning to the squad in the ninth round.
“I was a little bit angry, but she just kept me going,” Hopoate said.
‘She told me to keep working hard and that’s the approach I try to take every week at the club.’
Canberra suffered three straight defeats after losing 16-6 to the Storm in Melbourne.
WARNING – GRAPHIC IMAGE BELOW
Albert Hopoate has revealed how he recovered from a horrific burn injury
The 23-year-old suffered second-degree burns after a bottle of olive oil spray exploded
The Raiders will be hoping to take advantage of home advantage when they face Newcastle on Sunday afternoon.
Hopoate said the boys had focused mainly on discipline during training.
“During practice, we did 20 burpees as a team, every time we dropped a ball,” he said.
“Because we are all punished when we make mistakes and disappoint ourselves.”
Superstar fullback Kalyn Ponga makes his return to the Knights after being sidelined for 10 weeks with a foot injury.
Hopoate called Ponga the ‘Han Solo’ of the Knights team, but he insisted Canberra is ready.
“We just have to give him the time he needs,” he said.
“We have to be aggressive.”
The Raiders NSW Cup team currently sit second in the table and Ricky Stuart had no qualms about calling up halfback Adam Cook in a bid to inject some fresh energy into the team.
It is only the second time in five years that Cook has featured in Canberra’s starting line-up, having last appeared in round 20 of 2020.
He said his wife (left) helped him recover and stop being ‘sooky’
“Ricky talked to me and said he wanted me to take that confidence with me into first grade,” Cook told reporters.
‘Everyone is very welcoming and yes, that’s really good. They support me.’
Cook, who will wear number 7 for the Raiders, said the club needed to get back to doing what they do best.
“Stay in the game, stay in the corner, really chase them and bring energy,” he said.
It’s a must-win on Sunday for the Raiders, who are currently 12th in the table and need to beat the Knights to keep their finals hopes alive.