Ethan back home to begin rehab

INJURED Tasmanian footballer Ethan Stephenson has arrived back home at Latrobe and will soon kick-start his lengthy rehabilitation journey.

The 18-year-old Devonport Football Club rising star arrived home last Thursday and his mother Kylie Stephenson said the family would know more about the rehabilitation program on Monday.

Ethan spent a fortnight in the Royal Hobart Hospital and was initially placed on life support after suffering a serious head injury during a match last month.

He endured a four-hour operation for a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain and was placed in a coma.

Mrs Stephenson said her son would not be returning to football on advice of doctors because they could not install a plate on the base of his skull. This was because the fracture was too close to his brain stem.

Mrs Stephenson said the family was organising rehabilitation programs now, with a stint in Melbourne also on the cards.

Ethan lost 10kg while in hospital and Mrs Stephenson she said the rehab would cover body strength, physiotherapy and memory, depending on his needs.

“We’re discussing where the best place to go [for rehab] will be. We’ll know more on Monday,” she said. “He’s eager to start and get his body and mind right.

“He wants to go out and run a marathon. We’re easing him into it.”

Mrs Stephenson said Ethan was walking, talking, eating and drinking as the relative parts of his brain were unaffected by the bleed. He is also on medication.

A GoFundMe campaign has raised $20,100 towards Ethan’s rehabilitation.