Peter recalls injury

Ex-Kumul: I retired because I could not afford surgery

By PARKER TAMBUA
A SERIOUS injury can erase a sportsman or woman’s career within seconds and you only have to look as far as former SP Hunter Brandy Peter to find out first-hand.
The 28-year-old recalled his offseason misfortunes which ended his career right after the South Pacific Brewery-sponsored Hunters’ maiden Queensland Intrust Super Cup (ISC) title win in 2017.
The forward, from Pangia, Southern Highlands, played four seasons with the Hunters since he joined the side in their inaugural season in 2014.
A consistent performer, Peter played three tests and made two Prime Minister’s 13 appearances before a knee injury cut short the Kalane villager’s career at the age of 25.
Peter started playing rugby league at the age of 14 with Ororo Primary in the National Schoolboys Rugby League programme in Port Moresby in 2007.
When Peter attended Port Moresby National High School, he joined Hohola Offseason Rugby League side Toks Mixed Dogs. He then went on to study at the University of Technology in Lae in 2013 and that was where he caught the eyes of Hunters selectors when he played for Northern in the national zone championships.
Peter also represented the Unitech Spartans in the Vice Chancellor’s Cup (inter-university tournament) in the same year.
He seemed to be ticking off his bucket list and was in his prime when he suffered the injury while training at home.
“After winning the ISC grand final, we took our usual end-of-season break and I was training at home to keep fit,” Peter said.
“But unfortunately, I injured my knee.
“I underwent rehabilitation but I still didn’t see any improvement. I knew I needed surgery as the injury was serious.
“I tried to arrange for surgery but it wasn’t possible due to financial constraints. I also tried other means but still couldn’t pulled it off and so I decided to hang up my boots.
“I was devastated because a few clubs in England and Australia had shown interest in me.
“I was looking forward to a better 2018 but it wasn’t to be. It was really hard for me because I had to retire at a young age.”
Despite his short stint in rugby league, Peter is satisfied with what he has achieved.
He still treasures the Hunters’ 12-10 grand final win over Sunshine Coast Falcons at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia.
“Winning the title was the best moment of my career,” Peter said.
“We worked so hard to win the title in our fourth year.
“I’m thankful to God that I was privileged enough to represent my country on the biggest stage and to be part of the history-making Hunters was absolutely phenomenal.
“To play for the Kumuls was my childhood dream. Like any other boy in the country, I always dreamt of wearing Kumuls jersey and to do that was surreal.
“I was part of the side that beat Fiji 24-22 in the 2016 Pacific Test in Sydney. That was our first victory on foreign soil in 16 years so it was obviously an emotional moment for us.
“Preparation was spot on as I knew it was going to be the biggest game of my life.
“Lining up for the national anthem was always emotional as we knew that we had the weight of our families, villages, provinces and country of eight million people on our shoulders.
“Those are the moments you play for and I’m proud that I’ll be able to tell my son about what it means to me when he grows up.”
Peter said although he had hung up his boots, it was possible that he could lace up again for the love of the sport.
“I’m not ruling out a comeback if my knee is right,” he said.
“It may be in an offseason competition or any league at all.”