Jillaroo Kezie Apps as tough off the field as on it after Auckland Nines injury

IF you thought Roosters teen Bernard Lewis was inspirational at the Auckland Nines, you might not have heard about Jillaroo Kezie Apps.

Kezie Apps celebrates with the Jillaroos after the game.

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UPDATED: IF you thought Roosters teen Bernard Lewis was inspirational at the Auckland Nines, you might not have heard about Kezie Apps.

After NSW Origin star Apps left the field briefly for medics to stem the blood from a gash on her head, she returned only minutes later to break her leg in the Jillaroos’ second match of a three-game series with New Zealand.

But just minutes after being put in a moon boot and having her forehead stitched, Apps was back on the sidelines cheering the Jillaroos.

The Australian Jillaroos celebrate after beating the Kiwi Ferns 3-0.

“I hobbled out. There was no way I was going to sit down for that one,’’ said Apps on her return to Australia following the Jillaroos’ historic 3-0 sweep of the Kiwi Ferns.

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Apps said she hasn’t been able to face watching her leg break on TV but vividly remembers the sound her leg made when a ligament tore at the same time she broke her leg.

“I actually heard it go pop. I then just felt extreme pain,’’ she said.

Renae Kunst of the Jillaroos is tackled by Amber Kani (L) and Lilieta Maumau of the Ferns.

“I knew it was serious. I knew not to put any weight on it.

“I was just trying to hold it all together.

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“Poor mum was in the crowd, freaking.’’

Apps will miss Friday’s All-Star game in Newcastle but is determined to be back in time for the Jillaroos Test match in May and the World Cup later this year.