An amateur footballer suffered a horror double leg break after a freak accident on the pitch.
Calum Roger, 28, snapped his tibia and fibula after landing on his ankle while filing in for his local team Loganlea United in Edinburgh on February 8.
He was rushed to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for surgery where he remains.
The self-employed joiner says he has been told he may not be able to walk properly for nine months.
Calum, from West Lothian, told the Record: “I leapt into the air to get the ball and I landed on my right leg.
“I heard a massive crack and I knew straight away I had snapped something.
“I tried to grab my shin and my ankle was dangling like spaghetti.
“I wasn’t meant to be playing that day.”
Calum then endured a 45-minute wait for an ambulance as his teammates, coaches and the opposition rallied around him.
“The paramedics tried to calm me but I asked them to be straight with me”, he continued.
“They told me it wasn’t good and I just got really upset.
“Then the pain started to hit me.”
He was taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and placed in a cast overnight before undergoing surgery the next day.
His injuries were so severe, surgeons had to open up his leg above the knee and on the ankle to insert a steel rod and pins.
Calum continued: “The doctors told me my injuries were similar to those who experience a car crash.
“It was very scary.
“They had to get my leg into a split because it was hanging down. That was more painful than breaking it.”
Calum, who is self-employed, now faces nine months of recovery and physiotherapy before he will be able to walk or work.
His teammates and coaches have created a GoFundMe page that has already raised more than £1,000 to help him during this recovery.
He added: “My whole year has completely changed. I don’t know what situation I will be in by the end.
“I’m very grateful for everything my teammates have done for me. The response has been overwhelming and it’s nice to know people care.”
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