Former Brisbane Lions premiership winner Mitch Robinson was often hailed for his kamikaze style of play, but he insists he is not responsible hit that left a television comedian with broken ribs and gasping for air.
Comedian Dave Hughes was left battered and bruised after a heavy collision in a charity AFL Legends Game on Thursday night.
He suffered multiple broken ribs and a punctured lung during the contest while lining up for Victoria against the All Stars.
The injury occurred after a crunching clash with former AFL players Andrew Embley, Daniel Gorringe and Mitch Robinson, with Hughes bravely continuing to play despite the obvious pain.
Remarkably, he even stayed on to celebrate with teammates following the final siren before his condition worsened overnight.
His wife later drove him to hospital, where doctors confirmed the extent of his injuries and began treatment.
Hughes’s wife eventually drove him to hospital after he astonishingly played the entire match with broken ribs and pain
Mitch Robinson, famed for his kamikaze style, denies responsibility for the crunching hit that left comedian Dave Hughes injured
Robinson was regarded as a hard man of AFL because of his fearless attack on the ball and relentless physicality.
And he revealed on social media that Hughesy’s fans had blamed him for the horror injuries, so he wanted to set the record straight.
‘So I’ve been getting a massive amount of messages about Hughesy being on his death bed today,’ he said.
‘But let’s just look at this, he started it and the All Stars finished it.
‘Look at this [vision shows Hughes charging into Robinson off the ball], boom.
‘The ball is 50 metres away and he’s absolutely just s*** mixed me to the ground.’
‘He is my mate, so I had to message him this morning just to double check,’ Robinson said, with a post of the text exchange on the screen including the question ‘are you actually hurt?’.
Hughsey replied: ‘I’m [in] hospital with five broken ribs and a punctured lung.
Hughes told Robinson from hospital that Andrew Embley was the likely source of the devastating second-quarter collision, but the replay showed that hit was innocuous
Robinson later jokingly blamed Dan Gorringe, saying he heard the crunch from 20 metres away during the contest
Hughes bravely played on with broken ribs and a punctured lung after a brutal AFL Legends Game collision
‘It wasn’t our clashes it was a collision with Andrew Embley in [the] second quarter.’
Robinson showed the texts as proof, saying ‘it wasn’t me, people’.
But he wasn’t buying the claim that Embley was responsible either, saying former Gold Coast star Dan Gorringe was the culprit.
He then showed the vision of the hit that injured the comedian and television star.
‘Look away if you’re squeamish,’ he said in jest, as it showed Hughsey go down from the most minor of contact.
‘It had to have been [Dan Gorringe], that couldn’t have done it,’ Robinson said.
‘Who put him in the ruck against Dan Gorringe? Oh my lord, I heard that from 20 metres away.
‘But the man kicks a goal, he’s 70 years old [Hughes is 54] and goes out and does his thing.
‘In all seriousness, I hope you have a speedy recovery Hughesy mate, you’re an inspiration to so many out there.
‘I know you’re going to be in a bit of pain for quite a while, but it’s not going to be as bad as the Blues if they lose all those trades.
‘But yes, great cause, great charity, love being involved.’
