Richmond key forward Tom Lynch has opened up on the extent of the throat injury he sustained during the Dreamtime at G clash this year.
Lynch injured his larynx before halftime, with Tigers coach Adem Yze believing the 33-year-old would head straight to hospital. However, the veteran Tiger played out the rest of the game to help the club secure one of its three wins for the year.
Once Lynch did head to hospital post-game, the seriousness of the injury became clear as he spent a couple of nights in the intensive care unit.
"I obviously fractured my larynx. I couldn't talk at home for a week," Lynch said on Triple M's The Rush Hour.
"It was a bizarre injury, because when you normally do stuff you just rehab for a few weeks but I just had to go home. I ended up going up north. I couldn't order a coffee or anything so I just had to point at (my wife Olivia) and use my notes. It was a bit of a frustrating one.
"I was in ICU for two nights. They had to monitor you in case you swelled up and you can choke to death at the absolute worst end of the spectrum, but I was fine.
"I was the healthiest person in ICU by a mile.
"It was over a week, and then once I started talking it was very quiet. I still lose my voice a lot more quickly than I did before.
"I'll start yelling on the footy field and when I come off I can't really talk but apart from that I am fine."
It took six weeks for Lynch to recover and return to the AFL.
During the match, while unable to speak, Lynch produced one of the lighter moments of the season when sledging Essendon young gun Archie Roberts.
The two rival teams were locked in a game of push and shove late in the match when Lynch, without speaking, grabbed Roberts and spun him around to see his number - a physical way of saying, "Who are you?".
View this post on Instagram
Richmond's 199cm veteran has had his fair share of injury problems over the past few seasons but remains an integral part of the club as he looks to lead in the next generation of Tigers key forwards in Harry Armstrong and Jonty Faull.
Lynch received a one-year contract extension in late August to keep him at the club until the end of the 2027 season.
The 2016 All-Australian has had a glittering career since joining the club from Gold Coast in 2019, winning two premierships and a best-and-fairest award.
