Deine Mariner says he wants to return to play this season after emergency surgery saved his leg following acute compartment syndrome in his right thigh, with recovery now focused on getting his leg moving again.
Deine Mariner is back on the practice field—and this time, he’s talking like the season still belongs to him.
Earlier this month, the Brisbane Broncos winger faced the kind of medical emergency no player expects to ever see. After the Broncos’ loss to the Sydney Roosters, Mariner left the field with a corked thigh. What followed was a rapid deterioration that led to emergency surgery to save his leg. after he developed acute compartment syndrome symptoms.
Soon after the final whistle, Mariner reported pain and swelling in his upper leg where surgery had been carried out to relieve pressure. Team doctor Matt Hislop later delivered encouraging news, saying Mariner would likely be able to return to action despite almost having his leg amputated.
Now, Mariner has gone further. Speaking at Broncos HQ after six surgeries at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, he said he wants to come back and play this year.
“I think we’re looking around the eight-week mark,” Mariner said. “It gives me a bit more hunger to get back out there. I will always back myself to get back to my best footy, but right now I’m just focused on recovering well.”
His focus is physical as much as it is mental. “It’s just about getting my leg to fully bend,” he said. “At the moment it’s stuck a bit, so once that opens up, I’ll be able to start moving again. That will be my main focus the next couple of weeks.”
Mariner’s message is threaded with gratitude for how quickly his body was brought under control. and for the fact he woke up with his leg still there. “I tried to look at the bright side of things. You know, I was still breathing. I’m still alive,” he said. “And I think being in ICU. I saw a lot of other people that don’t get a second chance. so I was pretty grateful to obviously have my leg.”.
He said he didn’t dwell on the worst-case scenario for long. “To be honest. I didn’t think about it too much because when I woke up. I saw my leg still there. so I was like. ‘Oh. it’d be pretty bad if I woke up and my leg wasn’t there. ’” the winger said. “But I didn’t think of it even after. I know people were saying that I could have (lost it), but I didn’t. So, you know, I’m just pretty lucky to be in this position.”.
Mariner also described how unusual the situation was for his thigh — and how quickly the diagnosis came once symptoms were recognized. “They actually gave me the early diagnosis of the compartment syndrome, which I had never heard of before,” he said. “They rushed me straight to hospital, so I was pretty lucky to have Luke and Matt with me.”.
He said the speed of events meant he didn’t fully understand what was happening at the time. “I got rushed into surgery, so I didn’t really get to understand what was happening. All I knew was that there was a lot of pressure on my leg at the time,” Mariner said.
The compartment syndrome restricted blood flow and can lead to amputation if untreated. Mariner said doctors told him they hadn’t seen the condition in the thigh like his before. “They’ve never seen it before in the thigh,” he said. “It’s pretty common in the shin I think. but even the doctors were saying that they’ve never seen this before. So, you know, it’s just one of those bad luck situations. But I’ve accepted it, so it’s fine.”.
By the time he was able to focus fully on recovery, the medical work had been extensive. Mariner said he underwent six surgeries to get his leg in the condition needed to fly home from Sydney after suffering compartment syndrome in his right thigh.
Even amid the long road back, he’s already letting the season pull him forward. His Instagram post showed him on a practice field, hinting that the Broncos could be preparing to welcome him back sooner rather than later.
The story of this injury is stark: a corked thigh turned into emergency surgery. a stay that included ICU. and a moment when amputation was narrowly avoided. But in Mariner’s own words. the emphasis now is on motion—on getting the leg fully bent. starting to move again. and chasing eight weeks with the hunger to return to his best footy.
Deine Mariner Brisbane Broncos Sydney Roosters compartment syndrome Royal Prince Alfred Hospital Matt Hislop NRL injury update
8 weeks?? man that’s crazy.
So he left the field and it almost got amputated and now he’s like “it’s still mine”?? Hope he’s not rushing it honestly. That’s terrifying.
Wait compartment syndrome is from like, being tackled wrong right? I swear I saw something about blood flow or whatever. If he had swelling in his thigh then wouldn’t that mean it was like a pulled muscle that just went bad?
Six surgeries?? and he’s back practicing already, that seems insane to me. I don’t get how doctors said almost no amputation but he needed all that anyway. Also why does the article keep saying “edit… hunger” like he’s still in the squad mentally lol. Just hope he can bend his leg like they say and doesn’t get re-injured.