Adelaide icon Tony Modra has woken after facial surgery and remains in a serious, but stable, condition in hospital.
Modra suffered facial injuries when a fallen tree branch smashed through the windshield of the truck he was driving on Thursday evening.
The Adelaide and Fremantle great had surgery on Friday.
On Saturday afternoon, the beloved football figure regained consciousness – much to the relief of the Crows and wider community.
‘He’s awake with his wife Erica and his kids,’ Modra’s former Crows teammate and good friend Mark Ricciuto said just before three-quarter time in the team’s match against Melbourne on Saturday.
‘They just want to say thank you for all the well-wishes.
Footy legend Tony Modra (pictured) has turned the corner and is awake after facial surgery in the wake of his life-threatening truck crash on Thursday night
Pictured: Modra’s vehicle after the impact. It is understood a tree or branch crashed into his cattle truck as he drove home in high winds
Modra’s wife Erica (pictured) was able to joke about his famous good looks after he emerged from surgery to his jaw, cheek and eye socket
‘He’s showing the grit everyone expected from Tony.
‘The great news is there is growing optimism that he is going to recover, and recover well.’
Erica Modra joked about the effect of the accident on her husband’s looks once he had made it out of the woods.
‘Erica said to me just before, “He’s not going to be the same good-looking Tony Modra, he’s going to have some scars,'” Ricciuto revealed.
‘I said, “Well, he can be like us for once instead of being good looking as he always has been.'”
It is understood that the 57-year-old’s surgery involved complex procedures to repair the effects of the crash on his jaw, eye socket and cheek.
He was rushed into intensive care at Flinders Medical Centre after the crash at Back Valley on the Fleurieu Peninsula.
It is understood a tree or branch crashed onto Modra’s cattle truck as he drove home to his farm near Waitpinga, about 10km west of Victor Harbor in South Australia, during strong winds.
Modra is pictured playing for the Crows, where he became a legend. Fans paid tribute to him at the six-minute mark of the team’s win over Melbourne at Adelaide Oval on Saturday
Modra’s former Crows teammate and good friend Mark Ricciuto (pictured) delivered the good news about the legend waking from surgery
Erica (pictured with Tony and their son Luke shortly after his birth) had previously thanked first responders for helping save her husband’s life
Footy fans paid tribute to Modra – who wore the No.6 guernsey for the Crows – by applauding at the six-minute mark of the team’s win over the Demons at Adelaide Oval.
‘We’re hearing positive thoughts, there’s a lot of positive news coming back,’ Adelaide Crows coach Matthew Nicks said after his side won by 17 points.
‘But we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves.
‘It’s a tough time because he’s such a huge presence around our footy club … the energy that he brings.
‘He’s one of the best footballers to play the game, but he’s just incredible energy – he’s got this aura about him, always smiling … So we look forward to him recovering and getting him back.’
Modra is renowned as among the most spectacular players in AFL history – he kicked 588 goals in 165 games for the Crows and Dockers between 1992-2001.
The 57-year-old, a father of two, was injured in a freak accident near his sheep and cattle farm about 90km south of Adelaide.
Nicks said the plight of the popular figure loomed large at the Crows since the accident.
‘It’s something that we don’t hide from, that there are tough things going on in life and footy is not number one,’ Nicks said.
‘However when we get to the oval on a game day, there’s a need as a professional athlete to actually put footy number one for 120 minutes or a little bit longer than that, because you’ve got to prepare yourself.
‘So we had that conversation. We talked openly through a number of things that are going on in life, away from what we’re doing on a footy oval.
‘But the moment we walk off, then our mind goes back to family and to things like Mods, and where Mods is at the moment and how we can try and support [him].’
