WITH eight minutes left on the clock in the second quarter of Round 14, almost 90,000 fans fell silent at the MCG.  

It was a moment that put a pause to the famous King’s Birthday battle between Melbourne and Collingwood. A moment that, just like the Big Freeze, became more than football.  

Within seconds, Dees forward Brody Mihocek had gone from playing in one of the biggest games on the footy calendar to suffering a fracture to his neck and losing feeling in his arms and legs.  

“I heard a massive crack when I hit the ground and then lost feeling in pretty much most of my body, that’s when the worry kicked in,” Mihocek said, reflecting on the tackle.  
 
“I remember yelling out and saying that I needed some help, I had trainers come up straight away, and then the doctors.  
 
“It was pretty scary, the initial couple of minutes, I knew I had done something pretty bad.  
 
“I think I first started to get feeling back in my hips and then it slowly started coming back to my legs and arms.  
 
“To get my feeling back was the main thing for me and then I knew I was in good hands with the doctors and the support crew on the day.” 

Mihocek was stretchered off and taken to hospital, undergoing scans and then surgery mere hours following the incident.  
 
Thankfully, he was up and walking the following day, a big relief for Mihocek who, at the time of the tackle, wasn’t sure what the final outcome would be.  
 
“I’m feeling a lot better and the support's been amazing, I’ve had a lot of very kind messages from a lot of people” Mihocek said.  
 
“I’m still obviously coming to terms with the injury, I like to think it's just another football injury, but it is pretty unique. 
 
“To think of what could have been, I'm pretty thankful to just be up and walking and talking,  
 
“When the feeling wasn't there, obviously your thoughts go to — ‘I'm not going to be able to walk for the rest of my life’.  
 
“I think I played out scenarios in my head pretty quickly of what life would be like, and what life would be like with a family as well.  
 
“It's funny how quickly you can think of things in those moments, but on the day everyone was pretty calm, and I think I tried to stay calm as well for everyone around me. 
 
“It would have been pretty traumatising for a few. I think I held myself together pretty well though.” 
 
After a couple of days in hospital, Mihocek returned home, set to remain in a neck brace for the next six weeks.  

It was an emotional end to a game that already carried a lot of emotions for the new Demon.  
 
The King’s Birthday game was the first time Mihocek had faced his old side, and in front of a packed-out MCG.   

“The build-up to the day was to verse the old team,” Mihocek said.  
 
“It started off good and I was just hoping to get through the game and see everyone, shake their hands, give them hugs.  
 
“I think it being against Collingwood made it that little bit harder, but the support was there from a lot of good people. It's a shame that it happened then.”  

As Mihocek recovered from surgery, the tackle that led to his neck fracture would be shown to footy fans on repeat, with Collingwood’s Billy Frampton set for the tribunal in the days following the game.  

It was a whole new challenge for the 33-year-old, who would now have to get comfortable facing the moment that ended his season.  

“Obviously, there's been a lot of eyes on [the tackle] and you can slow it down, but in the moment, it felt like I lost my footing and went into the tackle, not knowing that it would ever end up like that.  
 
“I think in all circumstances it was just an accident and a loss of footing and if I’d kept my feet, it would have been a whole different story.  
 
“At the end of the day, these things happen in footy and you've got to move on. And that's the main thing - just getting on with it.  
 
“I’m trying not to feel sorry for myself, the whole "why me" thing. It's sort of about what I can do to feel good and help others.” 

The injury has come early into Mihocek’s time at the Dees, the experienced forward having just arrived at the club at the end of 2025.  

Coming across to the red and blue with over seven years of experience and a premiership under his belt, Mihocek was a helpful recruit for Melbourne’s young forward line.  
 
He’s been dubbed one of the senior leaders inside 50 and despite his season-ending injury, the 33-year-old humbly remains team-focused, hoping to be a helping hand for the back half of Melbourne’s 2026 AFL season.  

“I’m in the brace for six weeks and then I think after that, another six weeks of pretty minimal movement,” Mihocek said.  
 
“When you're a full-time athlete and then you get that all taken away, it can be pretty daunting, but just little things I can do — I reckon I can start ticking off a few rehab things - getting back and trying to get involved with the team.  
 
“The back half of the year gets pretty hard, so if I can be around and add a bit of support here and there, try and help the forward line as much as I can.  
 
“Just to be around the club, it’ll help with my mental state and I know the guys appreciate what I can bring to the team as well, so I'll just be in and around the club and trying to do my best.”