‘It looked a lot worse than it was’
Wellington Phoenix midfielder Chloe Knott left the pitch with blood pouring from her nose after she clashed heads with an opposition player while vying for a header in the dying stages of their 4-1 defeat to Western United last Saturday.
But despite initial fears from her coach and captain that she may have broken it, Knott said yesterday she was fairly confident she hadn’t.
Although the swelling has spread near her eyes, Knott said her nose wasn’t sore, and she expected to be available for the team’s trip to Melbourne to face defending champions Melbourne Victory this Sunday. ‘‘It’s not broken, I don’t think. It doesn’t hurt. I think it was more the shock of the impact,’’ Knott said.
The incident occurred in the 88th minute when Knott and Western counterpart Emma Robers jumped up to challenge for a header. Knott won the race to the ball but copped a heavy blow to the nose from Robers’ forehead.
‘‘I was trying to get back up but then I touched my nose and there was blood all over my hands so I thought ‘OK, this is not good’. ‘‘But I think it was more the blood that made me think I should sit down and get some assistance.’’
Knott passed a concussion test but Phoenix management played it safe and removed her from the game. ‘‘No stitches. I have a cut on my nose but it was just a little plaster [that was required]. I think it looked a lot worse than it actually was.’’