Knights forward Pauli Pauli admits he’s lucky to be alive following seven car pileup

NEWCASTLE Knights enforcer Pauli Pauli has admitted he’s lucky to be alive after being caught in a seven car pileup on the M1 last month that left him with a dislocated hip.

Seven vehicles have crashed on the M1 motorway at Cowan overnight, causing the highway to be blocked for four hours. Eight people were treated by NSW Ambulance and transported to hospital. Police and the Crash Investigation team are trying to establish the cause of the incident. Pics Bill Hearne

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PAULI Pauli doesn’t want to think about what might have been.

No one knows better than the Newcastle Knights forward how lucky he is to be alive after his car slammed into a wall following a seven car pileup on the M1 last month.

He suffered a dislocated hip, his sister Toaiva broke her leg and two younger brothers and a niece were badly shaken up. His new Subaru Liberty, which he only picked up on the morning of the crash, was written off.

“But it could have been far worse,” Pauli said.

Pauli says he was lucky to escape the crash with his life.

“A car is only a car. You can get another one. Your life is a whole other thing altogether.

“I feel very lucky to be alive and glad I’m still here and glad my family is still here too.

“It was wet, it was raining and someone clipped me and we smashed into the wall and there were cars everywhere.

“I was conscious but just really rattled when it happened and the family was out of it a bit.

“But the medical people were there pretty quickly and did a great job. They got us to hospital as soon as possible.

“But it’s hard to talk about. I don’t even like thinking about it to be honest.”

Newcastle Knights forward Pauli Pauli posted a photo to instagram of his family members involved in the car accident, with the caption: Thank god we are here and still alive. Like to thank everyone for their messages and calls throughout our recovery #blessings.

Five weeks on from the crash, Pauli said he is concentrating on the positives, the biggest being a new outlook on life.

Never the most conscientious trainer with Parramatta and more recently Newcastle, Pauli, 23, says the accident has been a “giant wake-up call”.

“It’s affected me for the better,” Pauli said.

“It’s made me appreciate life more. It’s funny but I can see my future a lot clearer and what’s important and making the most of opportunities.

“I just want to play my best footy now and give myself the best chance to do that.

“I wasted my first year in Newcastle last year because my form was all over the shop. I was just enjoying my life too much.

Pauli could return to the NRL by Round 10.

“The move up here was different to Sydney. It’s more relaxing and I just enjoyed it too much.

“This thing (the accident) has happened and I’ve made a change and it’s like ‘I can’t do that anymore. I need to switch on’.’’

And switch on he has.

Initial concerns he may not line up in the NRL at all this season were quickly replaced with predictions he could get back on the field by round 10.

But so quick has been his recovery, Pauli is now optimistically talking up a round three return.

Since the crash, he has modified his diet and dropped around 10kg from a hefty 128kg to around 118kg, leaving Knights coach Nathan Brown stunned at the transformation.

“His attitude to training even before the accident was so much better but you can just see he now understands the opportunity he has and the sacrifice he needs to make,” Brown said.

Pauli said his weight loss has aided his recovery.

“I’ve been eating but I’m eating properly now,” Pauli said.

“I used to just eat one big meal and another big meal and another big meal and that’s why I packed on the weight.

“After everything that’s happened, my mind just switched on and my diet has helped with the hip as well. Without losing the weight, I’d still be on crutches.”