Collingwood forward Andrew Krakouer's back from dead

ANDREW Krakouer's football comeback has been accelerated by the insertion of a dead person's tendon, it was revealed last night.

Andrew Krakouer

ANDREW Krakouer's remarkable football comeback has been accelerated by the insertion of a dead person's tendon, it was revealed last night.

The Collingwood forward will make a shock return to football today through the VFL only 22 weeks after tearing his ACL.

Dr Peter Larkins last night revealed Krakouer (right) had bucked the medical trend, opting for a type of surgery never before used in the AFL.

Instead of using some of his own tissue as a graft for the knee, Larkins said he had opted for a tendon from a deceased person. Larkins said the kind of surgery could have led to a quicker recovery time.

"It means you avoid having some of your own hamstring taken out, or avoid using some of your own tendon," Larkins told 3AW radio listeners.

"It's revolutionary for footy. It's used around the world in other sports. I don't know of another AFL player who has gone down this path."

Larkins said the surgery was an allograft, which is believed to have been used by former champion aerial skier and Collingwood director Alisa Camplin.

The outcome of Krakouer's comeback could challenge football officialdom's thinking about players' comebacks from torn ACL ligaments.