A 17-year-old boy faces a long recovery from a serious spinal injury sustained in a routine tackle during a match in rural New South Wales.
Lincon Goard, 17, was playing rugby for the Binnaway Bombshells under-18s league on July 20 in Narromine, a rural town about 40km west of Dubbo.
With just 10 minutes of play in hand, Lincon was running with the ball when he was tackled by two Narromine Jets lads, with a third joining the group from behind.
Lincoln’s mother, Nicole, told Daily Mail Australia that a routine tackle caused the life-changing injury.
‘That tackle happens a thousand times every weekend all over the state, it was just a freak accident.
“You play a contact sport and these things happen sometimes, but it was just unfortunate that this time it was my son.”
Lincoln heard a ‘crunch’ in his neck as his head tilted forward and his chin hit his sternum. He knew immediately that something was wrong.
He fell to the ground and could no longer feel or move his legs and arms.
The players, coaches and trainers rushed to Lincon’s aid and stabilized his neck to prevent further damage.
Lincon Goard, 17, (pictured with his grandfather) was playing rugby for the Binnaway Bombshells under-18s league in Narromine when he was tackled and suffered a serious spinal injury
Lincon broke his C4 vertebra and dislocated his C5 vertebra. He was rushed into surgery, where doctors spent six hours repairing the damage
He was then taken to Dubbo Base Hospital where doctors performed CT and MRI scans. The scans showed Lincon had both fractured and dislocated vertebrae.
Lincon, his parents and his 21-year-old sister Anna were then flown by ambulance from NSW to the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney.
Mrs Goard said the surgical team was on standby and began surgery on the Lincon that same night to repair the damage.
The operation lasted six hours and consisted of removing the broken vertebra and inserting an artificial vertebra. The dislocated vertebra was then replaced.
Lincon spent the next five days in intensive care, where doctors told his family that such injuries often lead to quadriplegia.
However, just one day after the surgery, Lincon could move the toes of his left foot and felt tingling throughout his body.
Doctors told Lincon’s parents, Nicole and Mark, that they could make him paraplegic. However, just one day after his surgery, Lincon could move the toes on his left foot and felt “pins and needles” throughout his body.
Ms Goard told Daily Mail Australia that Lincon was transferred to the Royal North Shore Hospital’s spinal rehabilitation unit and was slowly regaining his range of motion
Lincon still has a long road to recovery ahead of him, with his coach’s wife starting a GoFundMe page to raise money for his rehabilitation costs
“Now his normal sense of touch is returning and he is moving his fingers a little more,” said Mrs. Goard.
“His left side is much stronger than his right side. His right side is quite weak, but he has some movement there.
‘Yesterday they put him upright for the first time, so that he could carry his own weight. That took him a lot of effort. He is definitely on the right track.
Mrs Goard said her son’s mood changed when he stood up for the first time since the injury and was then able to access his phone.
‘He’s a typical 17-year-old boy who likes to be on his phone. J“Just by being back in touch with his friends, he’s regained some sense of control over his life,” Goard said.
“When we got him on the phone again, I said to my husband, Here comes our son again.”
She added that the family holds no “ill feelings” towards the boys who attacked her son.
“The boy who did it didn’t handle it very well at first. He thought he had taken out another child, but we have no ill will toward anyone,” said Ms. Goard.
‘I called all the people who were on the field with him and said, ‘That was a human being on the field, who you cared for, but that human being was my whole world, and you gave him the future he has now.’
“If they had moved him one millimeter, he could have been on a breathing tube and not been able to move at all. They gave my son a future, so we’re grateful for that.”
Mrs. Goard said Lincon just wanted to get back to work as a diesel mechanic with his father and drive around with his friends in his beloved pickup truck.
Mrs Goard added that the family has been overwhelmed by the support they have received from their small community in Coonabarabran
Mrs Goard said Lincon, who recently completed his training as a diesel mechanic, was looking forward to working with his father again and driving his beloved pick-up truck.
The teenager also jokingly asked his mother if he could play soccer next year. She responded with a firm “no way” and suggested he could “play golf or take up knitting” instead.
Mrs Goard added that the first 48 hours after her son’s accident felt like a “fuzzy hurricane spinning around in her head”.
“I would just burst into total devastation outside the room. His father and I would take turns,” Mrs. Goard said.
However, Mrs Goard said the family had received overwhelming support from the Coonabarabran community.
“We live in a small community of about 2,000 people and we have been overwhelmed by all the support through messages and prayers,” said Ms Goard.
‘They are fundraising, and that is quite a challenge for us.
Even Lincoln says, “Mom, do they realize I’m the only one?”
“He’s really amazed that all this is happening for him.”