Two years ago, Rhiannon Byers had to learn to walk again.
Years of representative-level rugby union left her with bulging discs in her back which required surgery. Six months later, she had to go under the knife again.
Rhiannon Byers in the Sharks victory against Parramatta earlier this year.Credit: NRL Images
“I had three bulging discs to the point where my spinal cord was getting compressed, where I ended up having loss of feeling in my feet. It was just an over-use injury,” Byers says.
“[The second time] I literally just bent over to pick up a footy at a captain’s run and I blew my back out again so then I had to go back in under the knife and have the second surgery, but this time the second surgery had more symptoms post-op, like the front of my shin and the top of my feet I can’t really feel on the right side of my leg.”
Two years on, with a broken wrist in-between, and Byers is preparing to play in the NRLW semi-finals for Cronulla this weekend after switching codes last year.
“I have to do heaps of prep and recovery with my back and prioritise it because you’ve only got one spine,” she says. “People sometimes say to me that I’m crazy for going back and playing, but I just wanted to prove to myself and others that you can do it if you prioritise yourself.”
Byers concedes she was hesitant to return to contact sport after the second surgery.
“I did [have hesitation] when it came to the contact … that’s what I was concerned about most, getting twisted and stuff like that, but Cronulla Sharks were awesome even in the Harvey’s [Harvey Norman NSW Women’s Premiership], they just went right back to the very basics,” she says.
“Literally, the fundamentals, because I had to pretty much do the basics for everything [after surgery], like learning how to walk again, learning how to pick up stuff, learning how to run again. So, I had to learn how to do everything all over again.”
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Byers once she moved to rugby league. After playing in Cronulla’s state team, Byers made her NRLW debut in round one of the 2023 season in the Sharks’ inaugural year.
“Pretty much my first carry in my debut I snapped my wrist and played 26 minutes with a broken wrist,” she says. “Found out it was broken after the game and went and had surgery pretty much straight away that week, and then I was out for the full season.”
Rhiannon Byers on debut for the Sharks in 2023.Credit: NRL Images
Byers has become a staple of Cronulla’s team in 2024, playing in the second row for all but one game this year. After a six-match wining streak to start the season, Cronulla have had a dip in form heading into this weekend’s elimination final against the Broncos, having lost their past three matches.
But Byers says she’s confident the team can find their best this weekend, and she’s grateful she gets to be part of it.
“It could have gone two different ways [for me],” Byers says. “It’s gone the right way for me, but it could have gone the other way where I’m no longer playing footy and just watching from the sideline. Obviously, [now] I’m going to be running on the field and playing in the semis.”
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