Rarely has a sporting career come to as agonising an end as Ben Fisher's on Thursday evening, just as he was preparing for what he knew might be his last professional match.
Scotland were completing the warm-up ahead of their Rugby League World Cup meeting with the US Tomahawks when the demands of playing three matches in nine days took their toll on one of their most senior players, as his calf muscle ripped.
"It was the very last motion of the warm-up; I turned off the ground to take off and, in stride, it just pinged," said the 32-year-old hooker who had announced before the tournament that he was quitting the game when it was over. "The only way to describe it is devastation. It's such a terrible way to go out and to finish a career. It's heart-breaking."
While he could, theoretically, recover in time to face New Zealand should Scotland qualify for the quarter-finals, Fisher knows in his heart of hearts that a long career which included becoming the first Hull Kingston Rover to play 100 Super League games, is over.
"I've never had an injury like this before; I've been quite lucky previously," he reported. "I'll go for a scan and hopefully the healing gods will sort me out."
Then again, given the way Fisher reacted as Scotland ran in four second-half tries to claim the 22-8 win that gives them a chance of qualifying, suggests that the healing power of joy should not be underestimated. "The crutches were high in the sky for half that second half and they got some dings in them too," he said with a grin.
While 32 seems a relatively early age to be calling it a day, that has to be seen in the context of the relatively low wages the average full-time rugby league professional earns and the need to plan for the future. What happened to him at the Salford City Stadium merely supported Fisher's contention that he has to protect his ongoing earning power for the sake of wife Helen and three-year-old Aidan.
After the match, his colleagues dedicated the win to their wounded comrade but emotional overload could have been a factor as they came close to throwing their last chance away with a horribly indisciplined first-half display which left them trailing 8-0 at the break.
"There was complete frustration at the start because we had a specific gameplan and we went completely away from it in the first 40 minutes. We were all over the place and that's normally what I feel is my role, to point the boys around the field to execute that plan," Fisher admitted. "We gave the boys a bit of a hiding at half-time and we got over the top, though, so it pays to pay attention."
Fisher expressed pride in the campaign and confirmed the view that many children and grand-children of what were effectively economic refugees are as emotionally committed as those born in the country.
"When I came over here it was a big goal to play for Scotland," said Fisher. "My dad grew up in Priesthill [in Glasgow] and they went out [to Australia] on boats in 1963.
"There were seven of them and they were the first of their family to go, so I still have family up in Glasgow and, every time I pulled the boots on for Scotland rugby league, I knew my family were the proudest they could be.
"There's something about representing the Bravehearts. The anthem says it all. It's the greatest anthem I know. It's outstanding and so is the fact that no-one ever gives us a run. While England get the highs of everything Scotland rugby league is run on a shoestring budget . . . two people out of a house and blokes doing it alongside their full-time jobs.
"It's phenomenal the time and effort they put into it and yet, up in Scotland, we can't get real backing. Hopefully, now people will open their eyes, see that this is a great little team and it's worth persisting with," added Fisher.
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