WARRNAMBOOL teenager Sam Brooks had his world turned upside down 12 months ago after a quad bike accident.
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Sam, 17, was left with serious head injuries which ended his football playing days and cast doubt over his promising basketball career.
Tomorrow night he will complete a remarkable comeback when he suits up for Warrnambool Seahawks in the Country Basketball League (CBL) against Colac Kookas.
Sam said he was given the all-clear to return to the court prior to Christmas.
“I can’t wait to get on court. I don’t care about how I play, I just want to be back out on court with my friends and teammates,” he said. “I am hanging out for Saturday.
“It’s very good. I am a lot more positive than I was this time last year.”
A quad bike accident at a Minjah farm in February 2012 left Sam with serious head injuries and in an induced coma in The Alfred hospital.
Sam sustained a fractured skull, bruising and bleeding on the brain, a broken nose, a broken bone in his back and bruised lungs.
He was unconscious for three days and, after recovering in the trauma ward, was transferred to the Epworth hospital for rehabilitation.
CBL Seahawks coach Barry Brooks has watched his son’s recovery in awe. Brooks said while he was apprehensive about Sam’s comeback, he was proud.
“It’s good he can get to that point,” he said.
“It’s been a long track and he’s showed focus and got the result.
“He has done a lot of work over the summer.”
Warrnambool hosts Colac at St Joseph’s Primary School stadium tomorrow night at 7pm.
The Seahawks enter the round 12 clash sitting in fourth place and on track for a finals berth.