Broken hand no match for sheer grit

PAIN has proven no barrier to Yarrabah prop Cyprian Mossman, who carried a broken hand to help the Seahawks to their maiden A-grade premiership.

In scenes reminiscent of former Brisbane Broncos prop Shane Webcke in the 2000 NRL grand final in a win over the Roosters, Mossman was clutching at his right hand early in the match but decided to push on to be part of the club’s special moment.

But it took some words of encouragement from brother Milton Mossman after 10 minutes to get there.

“After 10 minutes I felt the pain and I thought, ‘I’m gone’. I talked to my brother Milton and he said: ‘You can do it, block it out’,” he said.

“Trying to block it out for 80 minutes was a struggle. I just had to do it, just for the glory, and it paid off.

“I could almost jump that fence and run back home. That’s how much passion, power, glory that I had.”

Mossman said after the revup, he adopted an all-or-nothing attitude to finish the game.

“I wasn’t ever going to take a backward step from any of those big boys,” he said.

But the pain of a broken arm for 80 minutes paled in comparison to the “heartbreaks” he had gone through personally in his 14 years at the club.

“I’ve waited 14 years for this opportunity and it’s about time I’ve earned my break and I’m not going to let this slide, never in the world,” Mossman said.

Cyprian, brother Milton and Jack Webster were the only A-grade players to show up for a match at Atherton just over 12 months ago.

The Seahawks were also in financial and organisational turmoil, but members worked closely with the Cairns District Rugby League and Queensland Rugby League to keep the club running.

But Mossman still pounded the Yarrabah hills in the hope this year would be better and now he’s reaping the rewards.

“Good results don’t come easy, you’ve got to work for it and with this bunch of blokes, they make it easy,” he said.