Footy star opens up on horrifying moment he first realised he suffered ‘shark bite’ injury before being rushed into emergency surgery

Footy star Kai Pearce-Paul has shared details on the moment he first realised he had suffered a gruesome injury that required emergency surgery.

The Newcastle Knights forward’s leg was reminiscent of a ‘hot dog bun’ after he suffered friendly fire from teammate Dylan Lucas’ boot during the team’s win over Souths on Saturday night.

Knights coach Adam O’Brien said the England international’s leg was in a similar state to a shark bite victim. 

Pearce-Paul, 23, was rushed into emergency surgery to clean and close up the wound, which measured at nearly 15cm down his shin. 

‘I’ll be honest, I didn’t know [at the time],’ he told the Sydney Morning Herald. 

‘I only really noticed a couple of plays later when there was a stoppage. I looked down and thought it was just like any old graze. Then I looked again and I’ve gone, ‘Oh’. It was open and it was like a hot dog bun with a bit of flesh hanging out.

‘I’m next to [team-mate] Phoenix Crossland and I’m like, ‘Phoen, is that my bone?’ There was white through the middle. He swore when he saw it. I literally walked straight to the doctor. I don’t know whether it was the bone or the flesh that was a different colour, but it was that deep – and it wasn’t nice.’

Knights medical staff delicately treated the wound before he was taken to hospital that night. On Sunday morning he underwent surgery, with internal and external stitches used to close the lesion.

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The Newcastle Knights forward stunned teammates with his composure afterwards

Teammates were stunned by Pearce-Paul’s composure on the sidelines, with the England international eager to play in Sunday’s clash with the Dolphins. 

‘I’m actually quite good with things like that,’ he said. ‘I was more in disbelief than anything. I didn’t really understand how it happened. It was more shock and I was just thinking, ‘what the hell has happened here?’ 

‘[But] I was quite interested when they were checking it out. I’m not too squeamish. The boys said I looked really casual when they were checking it out. It’s just a long chunk out of the leg. Surprisingly, it didn’t hurt as much as I thought.’ 

Pearce-Paul could use a shinpad to protect the injury if he returns for the Dolphins game.