| Ben Ross takes $350,000 pay cut to sign with Rabbitohs after suffering serious neck injury | | Print | |
| Tuesday, 11 August 2009 12:39 | |||
Daily Telegraph Everyone told him that at 28, he would never play again. That it was over. Nobody could return from a neck injury as horrific as the one that laid him prostrate in an ambulance, with fears he would never even walk again. Later it was revealed he was a millimetre away from being paralysed for life. But five months later Ross capped a miraculous recovery and a testament to his bravery when he signed a bargain-basement one-year deal with South Sydney. "I'm excited, because it's been quite a long road, but honestly I always knew I would get a second chance," Ross told The Daily Telegraph. "I've got absolutely no fears of playing again, I can't wait actually." And anyone questioning the premiership-winning forward's desire to return and his love for the game, only needed a glimpse of the contract. The Daily Telegraph can reveal that Ross signed with the Rabbitohs for just $49,000 - a bottom-end deal that undoubtedly proves he's serious about competing again in the NRL. Under the incentive-based deal, Ross can earn up to $180,000 based on how many top-grade matches he plays. Despite accepting a baseline pay cut of more than $350,000 a year after four seasons with Cronulla, Ross could hardly hide his emotions with his wife, Renai, by his side yesterday. "I've had such a wonderful time at Cronulla and it was such a hard decision to decide to move on, but this is a fantastic opportunity with the Rabbitohs," he said. "They're a club with such a proud history and I'm really looking forward to meeting my new teammates over the upcoming off-season and getting back on the field again. "That day can't come quick enough as far as I'm concerned." The "long road" Ross refers back to remains forever etched in the 110kg prop's mind. It was the career-threatening moment, 150 days ago, that left him just millimetres from becoming a quadriplegic. After being stretchered from the field in round one against Penrith following a tackle he reeled out of after hearing a "crack", Ross's enviable lifestyle of football and family came to a devastating halt. With Renai by his side, Ross fought back tears when doctors delivered the news that he would require almost a three-hour operation in March to fuse his spine. The surgery was a resounding success. And while Australia's leading spinal surgeon Dr Richard Parkinson told Ross he could one day play football again, nobody took the invitation seriously. Except Ross. The popular Queenslander began plotting his comeback on that Sunday in late March, when he walked out of St Vincent's. But not even a steadfast Ross predicted such a hard slog. He could not travel further than his front door for the first eight weeks of rehabilitation. An avid car enthusiast, Ross could not get behind the wheel for more than two months. There were better days. And there were depressingly dark days too. Like the times when the phone calls of team-mates would get only as far as his voicemail. Isolated and immobile, the 2003 premiership-winner felt disconnected. But a breakthrough emerged in May this year, on the sandhills of Kurnell. Ross ran for the first time in two months, without pain or discomfort, and the belief was in his many footprints. "That was a big moment," Ross said. "I picked up the training from then on with daily gym sessions and plenty of strength work in my legs and back. I ride my bike everywhere and I honestly feel as fit as I ever have. "I'm not saying I'm going to get out there and be this big world-beater, but I wouldn't be wasting my time if I didn't think I couldn't play NRL or offer something to Souths. "They have taken a chance on me and there's no way I'll be letting them down."
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