After being asked to beef up Queensland's pack, Joe Ofahengaue has revealed he has returned from a lacerated knee that looked like a "chewed up steak".
Brisbane enforcer Ofahengaue is tipped to slot into the Maroons' front-row for July 10's series decider in Sydney after missing game two with a shocking knee gash.
How shocking?
Ofahengaue provided the grisly details after finally getting his head around the injury suffered in his Origin debut - Queensland's stirring 18-14 game one win in Brisbane.
"They said it looked like a chewed up steak," he said.
"Football studs aren't sharp. It just tore it open. It wasn't a clean slice - and it was pretty sore.
"I looked at it straight away, pulled it apart and could pretty much see my kneecap.
"I just wanted to see how deep it was in case I could get it strapped and get back out there - but all I could see was white."
It's eye-watering stuff.
But Ofahengaue is confident he can bounce back for a maligned Queensland.
Still, he cut a sorry figure after he was forced to witness the Maroons pack get steamrolled in NSW's 38-6 game two victory in Perth.
"I was bummed. I just felt bad. I felt guilty," he said.
Yet the Broncos prop backed himself to make a difference after doing everything he could to fast-track his recovery.
"I was taking supplements that I don't usually take. I was taking fish oil for the first couple of weeks until my guts didn't feel right," he laughed.
"I Googled how to speed up blood flow around cuts on your leg so I could get everything working as fast as I could - I had heat packs on it each night, heaps of stuff."
Now Ofahengaue is confident he can help lift a Maroons pack that was totally dominated in game two after being fitted with a custom knee protector.
Dylan Napa and Jarrod Wallace were dropped for the decider after only one Queensland forward - back-rower Felise Kaufusi - ran 100m in that fateful game two clash.
"If I wasn't feeling 100 per cent I wouldn't have come into camp," Ofahengaue said.
"But I am confident. And I have a big pad I can wear for confidence and to get me through the game.
"And if game two didn't motivate us then we shouldn't be here.
"It is about going out there and proving to each other we can be that team in game one and play some good footy."
