NRL 2023: How Parramatta Eels recruit Josh Hodgson helped Haze Dunster back from knee injury
Parramatta back Haze Dunster has paid tribute to new recruit Josh Hodgson for helping him back from his darkest days, long before they were teammates.
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Long before they were teammates, Haze Dunster and Josh Hodgson were trading secrets. Not on how to win footy games, but on how to recover from a serious knee injury.
Dunster’s tale was one of the saddest stories of last year, his hopes of playing first grade brought to a premature end in the pre-season when an ugly tackle by St George Illawarra’s Tyrell Fuimaono left his knee a mangled mess.
There are four major ligaments in the knee and Dunster tore three of them. The swelling was so bad, the doctors needed to operate twice.
First they repaired his medial collateral ligament. Then, five weeks later, they went back in and finished the job, touching up his anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments.
At his lowest ebb, Dunster stopped watching rugby league. As he forlornly stared down a long and arduous recovery, Dunster received a message out of the blue from Hodgson, then at Canberra and a veteran of two knee reconstructions himself.
Hodgson told Dunster if he needed anything, he was there. Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone, he said. He then maintained contact in the weeks that followed.
Remarkably, they are now teammates after Hodgson’s off-season move from the nation’s capital.
“Hodgo reached out to me before he was at the club and told me if I needed anything to reach out,” Dunster said.
“He checked in every now and then to see how I was going. I thought that was a top thing for him to do that.”
Eels captain Clint Gutherson, another veteran of a knee reconstruction, was a sounding board as well. So too the now departed Isaiah Papali’I, who made it his personal mission to pick up Dunster’s spirits.
The fact that he now stands in the middle of the club’s training ground at Kellyville, only weeks away from a return, is a tribute not only to Dunster’s determination, but to those who wrapped their arms around him and helped him fight back.
“It was a tough pill to swallow,” he said.
“The first couple of weeks I didn’t watch any footy at all – I was sort of off footy. The main thing was the mental battle I guess, trying to stay positive.
“You go from doing something every day to being on the couch and struggling to go to the toilet. I am grateful I have come out the other end.”
His recovery was a slow process. Dunster was on crutches for about eight weeks, then in a brace for another month. After that, he taught himself to walk again. To take his mind off his battle, he started learning Maori – he was born in New Zealand before moving to Sydney as a 10-year-old with his family.
“It was really repetitive,” he said.
“I felt out of whack when I was running. I looked goofy – the boys said I looked like a baby giraffe.
“I started contact probably four weeks ago – they started drip feeding me in (to training). I did my first full session about two weeks ago.
“After each carry and tackle I got more confident with it. Now I am just excited to play.”
That said, he still needs to be patient. He will visit the doctor on Monday and hopefully receive a clearance to play again.
Then he will need the green light from the physic. If things go to plan, he will play in Parramatta’s second trial and he has set his sights on playing in round one.
There is every chance he would have been there last year had it not been for the knee injury. Instead, he was forced to watch the club’s grand final charge from the sidelines.
At 23, he is determined to force his way into the Eels side and help the club fight once again for a premiership.
“That is what I am aiming for,” he said.
“It is not up to me – I have to get the doctor’s approval and a physio clearance. I am definitely trying to push for that second trial and hopefully the first game.
“I feel confident enough to play and ready to go …. but I still have to remember that the doc knows better and he knows my knee better than me.
“I have to stay patient and go off their word. If they say I can play in round one I will be keen and ready to go. But if not, I am still not too fussed.
“It has been a long journey. I don’t want to rush things.”
MOSES’ MASSIVE MONEY ADMISSION IN CONTRACT CALL
Parramatta half Mitchell Moses has vowed that money will play second fiddle to his pursuit of a premiership as he prepares to make a call on his future before round one.
Moses, at the centre of a multimillion-dollar tug of war between the Eels and the Wests Tigers, has returned to pre-season in the best shape of his career.
He has been driven over the off-season by a desire to atone for last year’s premiership defeat, putting contract talks on the backburner as he attempts to go one better than last year.
At some point, Moses knows he will need to make a call. That day, he says, is fast approaching.
“Definitely I want to get it sorted before the season starts,” Moses said.
“It’s with my management at the moment and they will let me know when it’s ready to go. They’re good at letting me focus on Parramatta and what we’re trying to do to start the year off well.
“I haven’t felt any pressure. I’ve handled it a lot better than in the past, you learn from those past negotiations and contract talks.
“Whatever happens, happens, I guess.”
THE FUTURE
Truth be told, Moses can’t really lose. Wherever he ends up, he will have the opportunity to set himself up for the rest of his life. If you listen to the rumour mill, the Tigers are willing to offer as much as $1.4 million a season to lure their prodigal son back to the club.
The Eels offer won’t be as high, but Moses has made a home at Parramatta and knows the club will compete for titles for the foreseeable future.
While money will play a part in his decision, Moses insists he is motivated by the desire to win a premiership.
“I want to win a comp - simple as that,” Moses said.
“Speak to any other players and they want to win a comp - that’s all I’ve wanted to do since I started playing footy at four years old.
“I wanted to play professional footy, I want to win a comp. That’s all I’ve wanted to do, it’s all I’ve strived for in my footy career.
“We were close last year, I can take some lessons out of that, and I want to win the comp. Simple as that.”
ONE BETTER
Moses hasn’t watched a replay of last year’s grand loss to Penrith but at some point he plans to sit himself in front of his television and see what he can extract from that defeat.
The Eels were blown away in the opening 40 minutes and Moses wants to know why. He wants to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
“I definitely want to watch it before the start of the year,” he said.
“It’s obviously going to hurt, but I’ve just go to. I’ve got to face what happened, (work out) where we went wrong and what we can fix up.
“We’re a different team coming in this year, but I definitely want to sit down and watch it on my own. I feel I’ll get too frustrated any other way. “They obviously came out fired up and we just have to match them. Take nothing away from Penrith, they were unbelievable, they’ve been the best team for three years.
“They are a quality side, that’s who we have to match it up with. If I can take some lessons out of that game, my first grand final, it will help me in the future.”
GETTING BIGGER
Moses has returned to pre-season in the best shape of his career. Immediately after last year’s grand final, he flew to England to play for Lebanon at the World Cup.
Following their quarterfinal exit, he flew home to be with his partner Bri and young daughter Aspyn. In between changing nappies, he has thrown himself into getting stronger and fitter.
“It’s probably the fittest I’ve felt going into a season, definitely,” he said.
“I’m fitter and stronger, everything, but it’s probably just come with age. I’m a bit older, I’m starting to fill out my body.
“It’s only taken me 10 years. I’ve come back here in the past and not been up to standard. As I’ve gotten older, and just the way the game has changed since I came into first grade, you can’t just go and expect to turn up to day one of pre-season ready.
“You have to stay fit. Not flogging myself … past years I’ve tried to do things outside but I’m more focusing on doing it myself rather than relying on someone else.”
He also paid homage to the influence of his daughter, who was born during last year’s finals series.
“That was has calmed me down, spending some time with her,” he said. “You go do your training and then come home and relax, spend some time with her. It’s a fair change, hopefully matured me a bit.”
CHANGING EELS
While Moses’ body shape has changed, so has the Eels spine. Reed Mahoney is gone and English star Josh Hodgson has joined Parramatta.
He has made an instant impression. Eels players have lauded his leadership and influence on the group. Moses believe Hodgson’s arrival will take him a better player by sharing the load.
“He’s definitely a different hooker,” Moses said. “Reed was outstanding, he did an unbelievable job for the four years he was here.
“He’s been outstanding, the Bulldogs are lucky to have him on board and he’s the captain now, so he’ll go to the next stage of his career.
“Hodgo is a different player, more experienced player. His leadership is unbelievable, I’ve never seen anything like it before to be honest.
“I’m very excited to play alongside Hodgo. He’s a different type of hooker, we’re trying to work on our combinations at training.”
The other significant change has been on the coaching staff - former Manly and Canterbury coach Trent Barrett has joined the club as an assistant and he has struck an immediate bond with Moses.
“He’s been outstanding, Baz,” Moses said.
“I’ve never had a halves coach who is so calm, he’s really narrowed my game down a bit. Me and Baz, I have a convo with him probably every day about what we are going to do.
“I love talking footy, he loves talking footy, he’s just been perfect.”
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