Nathan Fitzgerald’s condition “deteriorated” overnight after he was rushed to the hospital in critical condition on July 4, his club announced
Credit: Epping Football Netball Club – Vic AFL/Facebook
NEED TO KNOW
- Nathan Fitzgerald suffered a serious head injury during an Australian rules football match in Melbourne on July 4
- The 27-year-old player’s condition “deteriorated overnight,” and he is now receiving end-of-life care
- “The extent of what happened is completely rare and was really foreign territory for everyone to navigate,” said Epping Football Netball Club President Luke De Vincentis
One day after hitting his head against a teammate's during an Australian rules football match, a 27-year-old athlete is receiving end-of-life care.
Nathan Fitzgerald suffered a serious head injury after clashing heads with an Epping Football Netball Club teammate during a match of the high-contact sport in Lalor, a suburb in Melbourne, on Saturday, July 4, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News. On Sunday, Fitzgerald's club said in an update that his condition has since worsened.
“The Epping Football Netball Club is devastated to share that our much loved teammate & clubman, Nathan Fitzgerald's condition deteriorated overnight and is now receiving end-of-life care,” the football club based in Melbourne suburb Epping said in a statement shared on social media on Sunday, July 5.
“The entire Fitzgerald family is in our thoughts during this horrible situation and we ask that you respect their privacy. Please take a moment to hug & kiss your loved ones; life is precious,” the statement continued before concluding with a nod to the athlete's number: “‘34 – Forever Fitzy' 💙🤍.”
Police previously confirmed to ABC News that at about 1 p.m. on Saturday, emergency services were called to the Lalor Recreation Reserve, where the Northern Football League reserves match was being held, after a "man sustained a serious head injury during play.”
He was rushed to hospital in a critical condition, according to the outlet. The match was subsequently “abandoned” in the wake of the “serious on-field incident,” the Lalor Football Netball Club later announced.
Epping Football Netball Club President Luke De Vincentis told the outlet that Fitzgerald's injury occurred when he and his teammate both went to tackle a Lalor player at the same time. The Australian athlete appeared to knock his head multiple times, according to the club president.
"[There were] two to three significant knocks in the one motion," he told the outlet. "The extent of what happened is completely rare and was really foreign territory for everyone to navigate."
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De Vincentis told ABC News that there were “quite a few really shaken souls” at the club after Fitzgerald's injury. He also said its members were supporting each other.
“It was really incredible that in the moment, despite how shocking it was, the way the medical teams from both clubs handled it,” he said, referring to both the Epping and Lalor clubs.
PEOPLE has reached out to Epping Football Netball Club for comment.
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