Mason Cox wears goggles as sole AFL player cleared after six eye surgeries
Retina detachments, cataract surgery, and rival targeting haven't sidelined the Fremantle ruckman.
Mason Cox is the only current AFL player permitted to wear prescription goggles on-field. This permission was earned through years of eye trauma.
He's had six operations: three on his left eye, two on his right, plus cataract surgery. Damage started when a ruckman's accidental eye poke detached his retina.
During surgery to fix that injury, doctors discovered a second retina, from a separate on-field clash a year earlier, had also detached. In 2019, Cox was temporarily legally blind and worried his career was over.
He kept playing anyway. Rival players including Dayne Zorko have targeted his goggles.
They were stolen before finals in 2022. Yet Cox enters Saturday's grand final as a two-time premiership winner.
Derek Hine, who brought Cox to Collingwood, said: "I guarantee his eye injury was one that would probably retire nine out of 10 players, but he was so tough and resolute."
- 6 operations
- Eye surgeries
- $4000
- Goggles cost
- 2
- Premierships won
- 2019
- Year of blindness
Why it mattersCox's resilience through repeated eye injuries shows the extreme physical toll AFL players endure and makes his place in the grand final extraordinary.
AustraliaFremantle's Mason Cox plays today's AFL Grand Final despite a medical history that would have ended most athletes' careers.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 1 h ago
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