Toby Rudolf was lying in a hostel bed in Amsterdam fearing a persistent toe injury could end his NRL career after clocking up 20,000 steps walking through the Dutch capital in a pair of Crocs.
The Sharks prop had already gone under the knife, missed three months of NRL afterwards and was still hampered by a particularly rough case of turf toe – when ligaments are damaged by the toe being bent upwards – nine months later.
So Cronulla sent him to the ‘Queen of Toes’.
Rudolf had begun to fear the injury would settle in for good, especially when he marched around Europe while on holiday, until Dr Sue Mayes AM – head physio of the Australian ballet, intervened.
Mayes’ credentials – 27 years with the Australian ballet and a 2020 Order of Australia medal – make for impressive reading. “She’s the queen of toes and anything in the lower extremities,” Rudolf says.
“She’s run ankle workshops that our physios have been to over the years. She’s known as the GOAT of toes. And she just put me at ease when I was wondering if my career was in trouble.
“She said she’s seen dozens and dozens of injuries similar to mine – not taking away from the severity of it – but injuries that were much more severe, much more dramatic than mine in people that used their toes much more than me.
Toby Rudolf is fighting fit once more thanks to the Australian ballet.Credit: NRL Photos
“She gave me some rehab exercises that were a bit outside the box, just a few balancing things and toe dexterity work, some pretty different stuff. And I saw a key change within two weeks.
“I’m really pleased with how it’s going now. It will never probably be the same as it was but to be able to get through games, and walk around pain free, it’s a massive relief.”
Rudolf is fit and firing once more, with coach Craig Fitzgibbon especially pleased with his second stint against the fast-finishing Cowboys last week.
‘She’s the queen of toes and anything in the lower extremities. She’s known as the GOAT of toes.’
Toby Rudolf on Dr Sue Mayes
The 28-year-old takes on Penrith’s world-class props James Fisher-Harris and Moses Leota this Saturday after clocking a season-best 160 running metres and 29 tackles to get the Sharks home.
But for a 190cm, 106-kilo rugby league front-rower who makes a living running headlong into other large humans, to be brought down by a toe injury didn’t make a whole lot of sense.
Particularly when he found himself confined to a moon boot aside from game day last year and explaining to school kids that he had been felled by a toe injury, only for them to laugh in response.
“‘It’s just a toe’ was playing on my mind,” Rudolf says. “And yeah, it is just a toe, but I was also told that your toe generates eight times your body weight when you’re accelerating to run.
Fit and firing: Rudolf is back at full steam.Credit: NRL Photos
“So for a bigger guy like me, that’s a fair bit going through it, and it’s pretty painful, not much fun. I’m glad it’s out the other side now.”
Rudolf has turned to surfing and ditched his own personal booze ban earlier this year to help sort out his mental approach to the game.
While a dose of salt water offers a break from technology and “the crazy pressure of this industry”, he’s found a beer every now and then doesn’t hurt either.
“I had about six months at the start of the year when my toe was still pretty damaged and pretty inflamed, I was off the beers,” Rudolf says.
“I had a few beers after the Gold Coast game [in round 23] but prior to that, I didn’t really deserve a beer the way I was playing. I did think ‘this might be what I need to relax a bit’ because I can overthink things and get in my own head a bit at times.
“Now we’re deep in the finals, obviously there’s no big blowouts or anything.
“There’s no ban or anything but I’m pretty diligent with my preparation and certainly won’t be ripping into it before taking on Penrith or anything.”
NRL is Live and Free on Channel 9 & 9Now
