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De Allende ‘lucky’ to be playing rugby again after firepit shock

rugby21 July 2021 03:42| © SuperSport
By:Brenden Nel
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Damian de Allende © Gallo Images

Springbok midfielder Damian de Allende has admitted he “feels lucky” just to be playing rugby again after a freak fire pit accident that left him and fellow Bok RG Snyman with serious burns.


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The accident, which took place in Limerick, saw him and Snyman end up with burns to their hands, legs and face after a teammate poured petrol onto a fire at the firepit and the incident went horribly wrong.

The petrol canister caught alight and when dropped doused the two stars, as well as two other players - one being South African-born Irish test forward CJ Stander - and meant hospital time.

Since then De Allende missed several training sessions and was confined to a bike and gym work for fear of infection, while Snyman is likely to miss the entire series because of a skin graft that needed to be transferred to his knee.

The incident continues to be shrouded in mystery and while those around the pair have admitted it was an accident, the communication from the club Munster has left more questions than answers and was less than forthcoming, with it now clear the players have been told not to speak about what happened.

Still, De Allende was grateful to be named in the Springboks line-up to face the British and Irish Lions in the first test on Saturday and admitted he felt sorrow for his teammate Snyman, who is likely to miss the entire Lions experience.

“It did happen and I’m just grateful it didn’t end up worse than it was. Thinking of a guy like RG, he got the worst of it. I still feel very sorry for him and he has gone through a lot at the moment. I got lucky and I’m glad it wasn’t worse,” De Allende said.

“To say that I’m just glad I got to play rugby again.

De Allende admitted he had a shock after first thinking the incident wasn’t as bad, but when the pain set in he realised how close he was to missing playing rugby again.

“After it happened, I went into a bit of shock and I was in hospital on morphine. I thought it was a bit of a joke at the time but once it wore off and the pain snuck in, it struck me how bad it was and how much worse it could have been.

“I’m very grateful I got through some good game minutes in the past week. Obviously it was tough to play two games in a week and I haven’t done that for a long time. It was good.”

The Bok midfielder played twice for SA A, including the team’s loss to the Vodacom Bulls, a wake-up call for the fringe players who were hoping to make an impression on the selectors.

“Everyone who played Saturday’s game, it was quite tough emotionally afterwards, but it was a good lesson for us not just losing that game but also putting our body and minds through two physical battles in one week. I’m just glad there were no injuries and we all got through it nicely and the bodies are feeling a lot better this week.

“I’m grateful we have a week off before the next game. I’m just grateful to be playing rugby again.”

The firepit incident underlines how quickly things can change in life, and De Allende, probably the most go-lucky player in the side, who normally drifts through a test season with a smile on his face, and few cares in the world, knows how lucky he was to be playing again.

The likelihood is that he will remember this going onto the field, and hopefully take his form forward from Munster this past season, and the World Cup before that.

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