Oliva Sialau is happy to be back with the Dukes, but the injury is still on his mind | regional game

Oliva Sialau is very happy to be back on the field. The Dukes rugby player broke his ankle against Emland in early May. “Two men tackled me from behind. Then someone fell on my ankle with a hip,” the 29-year-old explains of what happened. “At first I didn’t think it was that serious until I looked down and saw it was the other way around.”

Siala was in pain at first. “I was hoping I could have surgery soon, but because of the swelling, it was only possible after ten days.” Either way, it was a disappointing season for him as he had already missed games due to a meniscus injury. “This wasn’t my year and I hope I don’t have to go through this again. The rehab was tough and had its ups and downs.

At home in Waalwijk he had to climb steps or sit down. At first I could only lie in bed or sit in bed or in my wheelchair. The kids playing rugby at The Dukes wrote letters for me, which made me happy. He also found time to learn Dutch. Sialau was born in Samoa, but lived for long periods in New Zealand and Australia. He was also given access to dumbbells to train his upper body.

He was slated to return against Emland, but he had already done so in the previous round at Oysters. Sialau is happy to be back, but the result against Eemland made him less happy: 17-38. Dukes have a reputation for slow starts. Against Amersfoort’s side, Den Bosch had a chance to take an early lead, but Phoenix Hunpao’s penalty saves didn’t go through. Emland, on the other hand, took the lead with a try and conversion.

“Eameland played like a team, and with us it was more personal,” says Sialau, explaining what he thinks is the difference. “Only at the end did we stick to our plan and then you could see how well we could have played, but it was too late.” In the closing stages, the Dukes came back to make it 17-31 thanks to tries from Sialau and Bart Mummers. After losing the ball, the visitors set the final score at 17-38.

Physically, Sialao has recovered. Although limping afterwards. “There are some aches and pains after a match, but that’s manageable.” Mentally it is very difficult for him. “The hurt is still in my mind. Especially now we played again against Emland. I’m a little more anxious around the people around me. Sometimes I tell myself to ‘focus on the game’. It takes time. The more minutes I play, the more I get into rhythm, the more confidence I get, and the better I get.

Nobles can indeed use a suitable sial. The defeat saw Den Bosch drop out of the top six in the Premier League. They need to win their next three matches to finish in the top six.