Sandon Smith’s brief return to the top tier of rugby league was cut short when he was knocked out in a collision with a Sydney Roosters teammate. This incident occurred just 30 minutes into his comeback during a match against the Melbourne Storm at Allianz Stadium.
The game started with the Roosters’ Daniel Tupou scoring in the sixth minute, assisted by captain James Tedesco’s swift play. However, tensions rose as Kane Bradley was reported for a high tackle on Tedesco during the same sequence. Renowned commentator Andrew Johns noted the severity of the hit.
Melbourne quickly retaliated, with Josh King scoring after capitalising on a grubber kick from Jahrome Hughes. Tupou then scored another try, demonstrating his aerial dominance as he caught a cross-field kick from Sam Walker. With this try, Tupou surpassed former teammate Brett Morris to secure fifth place on the all-time try-scoring list in first-grade rugby league.
Despite these early successes, Tupou’s blunder during the following kickoff led to a costly mistake; he allowed the ball to bounce dead, granting Melbourne advantageous field position. This misjudgment allowed the Storm to score again, with tries from Jack Howarth and Harry Grant, the latter resulting in a serious injury for Smith after a head-on collision with teammate Salesi Foketi.
Johns commented on the unfortunate nature of the incident, noting that it was a case of “friendly fire.” Smith, requiring assistance to exit the field, was classified as a category one concussion, while Foketi was assessed as a category two. Observations from sideline commentator Brad Fittler indicated that Smith appeared visibly concussed, struggling to maintain his balance as he walked off.
Smith, who had been sidelined for two previous games and stepped in due to Hugo Savala’s wrist injury, found himself back in the fray only to face this unfortunate turn of events. Despite his young career experiencing these setbacks, Smith managed to put the Roosters ahead in the first half thanks to Siua Wong’s contribution before the break, marking an unpredictable first 40 minutes of the match.