Former Geelong player Osca Riccardi recovering well after going into a coma with a sudden brain infection

Former Geelong player Osca Riccardi feels lucky to be alive after a brain infection saw him placed in a coma. The son of Cats great Peter opens up on his serious health scare.

Osca Riccardi opens up on his serious health scare. Picture: Alan Barber

“If mum wasn’t there we probably wouldn’t be having this chat.”

Former Geelong player Osca Riccardi, the son of Cats great Peter, was rushed to hospital on Monday the 27th of May and placed into an induced coma at Geelong hospital with a brain infection, sinus infections and glandular fever.

And it is scary how dramatically things turned for the healthy 19-year-old. He went from having fun with mates to life support in a matter of hours.

Riccardi had gone for breakfast with his close mate and Geelong VFL teammate Tobyn Murray before the North Geelong raffle day, where his father coaches the seniors.

After the raffle he had a dip in Ocean Grove with a couple of friends, grabbed dinner and even went out for some 10-pin bowling.

“I came home, saw mum and dad, made them a cup of tea, went to bed perfectly fine and that’s when it all kicked off,” Riccardi said.

“Woke up vomiting in the middle of the night and I was told, ‘sleep it off, have a Panadol, you’ll be right’, as you do when you’re sick in the stomach.

“Woke up and could barely talk and could barely walk and just very thankful that mum was home, she was very concerned, she took me into Geelong hospital, I think that was around one o’clock, got in there and by five o’clock I was in an induced coma on life support.”

His mother, Mel, had fortunately made the decision to work from home that day, which may have been the difference between life and death.

“It’s a scary thing to think about and just so grateful for her, as she calls it ‘mother’s intuition’. She just knew she had to stay home on that Monday morning,” Riccardi said.

“It is pretty hard to think and speak about, I just couldn’t thank her enough.

“She is literally my superhero and as much as the ICU and Geelong hospital saved my life, she really saved it.”

Riccardi spent three days in a coma before he regained consciousness, and for his family it felt like years.

Osca Riccardi was put in an induced coma after a brain infection. Picture: Supplied

Riccardi regained consciousness three days later. Picture: Supplied

“We weren’t sleeping much, Mel was in there for most of the time... I was there for most of the nights,” 288-game Cat Peter said.

“We weren’t sure how he was going to wake up, that was the unknown.”

The moment he did come to was a bizarre mixture of hilarity and relief for the family.

Riccardi doesn’t recall this, but he had some stern words for his hero.

“Apparently I looked at mum and said, ‘you didn’t believe me’. In terms of how sick I was, so that’s a bit brutal,” Riccardi said with a laugh.

“Obviously it is going to be the toughest time of their life for them to see what I’ve gone through and for them to sit by my side every single day and night in a coma and even when I was just sitting in bed waiting to get out, I am grateful for them.”

After that he was bouncing off the walls.

“I didn’t sleep for 38 hours, so I was just on go mode for 38 hours. I did not shut up, I had dad by my side at 2 o’clock one night and I’d close my eyes for 30 seconds and say, ‘that was a great sleep’, and he’d be like, ‘you didn’t blink mate’,” Riccardi recalled.

“So I p---ed him off at 2:30 in the morning on the Thursday night to the point where he had to go because he needed sleep. He’s like, ‘mate, if you don’t go to sleep I am going to leave’.

“Funny experiences in there but full on, very full on.”

Even though Peter felt blessed that his son was awake and well, he was sleep-deprived after their stressful week.

“I don’t think he wanted me to leave, but at the same time we needed him to get some sleep too,” Peter chuckled.

BOSTON’S BIRTHDAY

Riccardi had one target in his sights: getting out of hospital for his younger brother’s birthday.

Boston, who is coming through the Falcons ranks like Osca before him, celebrated his 17th birthday on Tuesday June 4 — just eight days after he was rushed to hospital and four days after he came out of the coma.

“When it came to Tuesday they came in the morning and said we are going to try and keep you in until the end of the week. I got a bit emotional then because I really wanted to come out and celebrate it with him,” Riccardi said.

“I know it is not a huge deal, but to see what he has gone through in that last week and to have him out for his birthday would be the biggest present he can get.

“Then I had my last pump of antibiotics on at 12pm on the Tuesday and then at 2:30 in the afternoon they came in and said ‘I think we are going to try to get you out today’. And that was when I was happy as ever, mum was with me at the time and she had the biggest smile on her face.

“The reaction from the family to know I was coming out was the biggest sigh of relief, they haven’t been sleeping.”

Boston got the perfect birthday present when he came home from school to see his older brother standing before him.

“Around 3:30-4pm I was discharged and got home straight away and waited for Boston to walk home from school and gave him a big surprise and he was over the moon,” Riccardi said.

Peter Riccardi with Osca and Boston back in 2020. Picture: Alan Barber

ROAD TO RECOVERY

The day after leaving the hospital, Riccardi had one thing on his mind.

“The day after I went out I went to Rebel (Sports) and bought a new pair of boots and said, ‘I’m going to wear them this year’,” Riccardi said.

“I reckon I’ll push to play the very end of the year, whether that is for Geelong or Bell Park, I don’t mind. I just want to be able to put the boots on again and run out and start kicking the footy – even if it is just at training.

“I’ve set myself a goal and I think it is achievable, I’m pretty sure it will be achievable, but that will be another long journey.”

“Hopefully I am back at the end of this year but if not I will be attacking 2025 as hard as I can.”

The playmaker, who spent a year on Geelong’s AFL list last season, came down to visit his Geelong VFL teammates last Thursday.

Murray had been down to visit him in hospital — both when he was in a coma and out of it — and was relieved by his progress.

Osca Riccardi spent a season on Geelong’s list. Picture: Alan Barber

“He seems pretty well and he has come into the footy club at Geelong VFL and said g’day to all the boys which is really good. He seems like he is on track to recovering,” Murray said.

“It was a bit of a surprise to see him rock up to the club. It just goes to show how quickly he’s recovered and moving forward.”

“When I found out the news Monday it shocked me a bit and I sort of sat back and realised this is pretty full on. It just goes to show how quickly things can change from being completely healthy to being in hospital in a coma.”

HORROR YEAR

It has been a hellish 12 months for Riccardi.

Last year he had his AFL dreams dashed after one injury-interrupted season at the club where his father is revered.

But he has a new-found appreciation for life after this horror health episode that he will hopefully fully recover from.

“It has just made me appreciate things a lot more, things like when I go for a walk and have a coffee, I appreciate a lot more,” Riccardi said.

“But at the footy side of things I’m still going to give it a red-hot crack. I still love it and it’s not like it is the end of the world now, I am still going to be in there and in and under it

“It has been a pretty tough 12 months, the delisting to this and haven’t really had too much footy in the last 12 months, which is annoying. But I’d rather be right now, like I am now, than back in (hospital) and still unknown with what I have.”

Originally published as Former Geelong player Osca Riccardi recovering well after going into a coma with a sudden brain infection