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Adelaide great Tony Modra has undergone a marathon round of facial surgery and was making promising progress in hospital, following his serious truck crash on Thursday evening.
There were fears for the 57-year-old’s life after the cattle truck he was driving crashed in regional South Australia when a tree fell across the road, leaving him with serious injuries.
Modra, who owns a cattle farm at Waitpinga, south of Victor Harbor, was the sole occupant of the cattle truck. He had been driving along Range Road, Back Valley, about 10 kilometres west of Victor Harbor when the accident occurred, and was flown to Flinders Medical Centre in Adelaide for treatment.
Fellow Crows champion Mark Ricciuto said on Saturday that Modra, one of the most popular players of the 1990s and renowned as a prolific goalkicker and for his high-flying marks, needed surgery to repair the left side of his face.
“He is making a good recovery which is unbelievable,” Ricciuto told Kayo Sports.
“Everyone was really concerned about him for 24 to 36 hours, fearing that he might not get through, but he is showing the grit that we expect from Tony.
“He had a really long day in surgery, it was still happening late into the night last night to fix the left-hand side of his face where the branch or tree came through the inside of the truck and fixed up his jaw, cheekbone and eye socket – they had to get it all back together.
“He might not be the same perfectly good-looking Tony Modra when he recovers, but the great news is that he is going to recover and recover well.”
Ricciuto gave another update from Modra’s family on Saturday afternoon, saying he had woken up in hospital and was with family. He added that they were grateful for the outpouring of support since the news of his crash.
The club and the football world have rallied around Modra and his family, with fans paying tribute to the star forward at Adelaide Oval on Saturday, with the Crows hosting Melbourne in an AFL clash.
Crows fans broke into applause for Modra in the sixth minute of the first quarter. The man known as “Godra” wore No.6 for the club.
He played 165 AFL games, kicking 588 goals, and played 118 of those with the Crows, booting 440 goals – the second-most in club history, behind Taylor Walker – before kicking 148 goals in 47 games for Fremantle.
A large banner that read “Godra” was also unfurled.
Before the match, Crows coach Matthew Nicks, also a friend of Modra’s and having idolised him when growing up, spoke about the situation.
“He still has an unbelievable presence in this state, let alone this football club which is our family,” Nicks told Kayo Sports.
“Every game day, he still runs an area downstairs, and he’s known to [playfully] steal footballs that go down behind the goals.
“To hear what his family is going through, we spoke about it openly, as a group, an hour and a half ago.
“The reality is that we need to lock in and focus, but there is the utmost respect, he is loved by this footy club, and we will be there for him.”
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