We all remember it. With vivid clarity.
Much more clearly than the man in the middle of it. Only subsequent viewing of the video has given him an understanding of the magnitude of the incident.
May 17, 2019. West Coast Eagles hosting Melbourne in a round nine match at Optus Stadium. It’s the middle of the second quarter. Shannon Hurn sizes up his options and kicks long down the line to Nathan Vardy.
He is in a contest with Melbourne’s Tim Smith. They fly. Young Eagles forward Daniel Venables ghosts in from the side. He bears the full brunt of contact from Smith’s hip to his head. As he floats towards the deck, his head hits the ground too.
The impact is severe. Concern immediate. It’s only 20 metres from the Eagles bench and club medical staff rush to the scene. They saw it, they heard it. And they know he’s in strife.
As replays of the incident are shown on the big screen, the crowd gasps in unison.
While it was clearly a severe collision, the extent of it would not be known for weeks. Months. Years.
Initially, the expectation, like most incidents of this nature is that Venables would go through the standard concussion protocols, miss a week or two and the bright young prospect would be back to build on a solid career platform.
The final outcome, however, would be far from ordinary. It would be revealed 804 days later with an announcement yesterday to the playing group and football department staff that at 22 years of age and with just 21 games played, his AFL career was over.
An AFL medical panel had advised him against continuing to play the game he loves. He had exhausted every avenue.
He had suffered through the on-going issues from that collision for two-and-a-half years. Silently dealing with splitting headaches, the pain in his neck and his jaw. Sleepless nights.
Few people, including teammates, had any idea of the extent of what he was going through. And what he’s still dealing with. Often he fights his mind to get out of bed.
The football world became aware of his constant battles in a revealing interview with Eagles Media a little more than a month ago. It was the moment reality hit for many of us. We had waited for the day when Venables would get the tick of approval to play again.
So was he. One day, he thought, he might wake up with a clear head. That the constant pain would subside and his life’s passion would continue. Certainly, at times, there were encouraging signs.
We had seen him step up his training.
He wore a fluorescent cap in drills to alert teammates of his presence. He needed to avoid contact.
That aside, he looked good. We saw the speed, the skills and game sense that earned him a spot in the 2018 premiership team. So clean off the deck, so precise with his kicking. Just what we need.
He was drafted with pick #13 in the 2016 ballot. Viewed as a natural midfield successor to current captain Luke Shuey. They share so many traits.
Venables has been one of the missing links in the Eagles squad. It has been tantalising to see what he could do on the track, knowing he was facing such a battle to play. Heart-breaking too.
And it’s not just about footy. He’s an outstanding young bloke. One of the guys in the locker room who is universally respected.
He is not the gregarious prankster, but he has a quiet, dry sense of humour. A cheeky smile and a sense of fun. When he delivered the news of his forced retirement to the rest of the squad, you could have heard a pin drop.
As he shuffled nervously at the front of the group, an unnatural setting for him, he delivered the news that surprised no one. As he spoke of his battle he found the moment to throw in a sharp one-liner about coach Adam Simpson knocking the door down asking him to play.
Simmo is always talking about players banging down his door demanding to play and eventually getting their way. Sadly, Venables will not get that opportunity.
When time passes and the 2018 premiership is a distant memory and future generations ask questions about Venables, it is up to us to ensure his story is told. One of a bright young rising star doused in his prime.
