St George Illawarra winger Mat Feagai has detailed the "very scary" moment he felt as though his legs had stopped working following a mid-game back injury.
Feagai collapsed to his knees after taking a yardage carry during Saturday's 44-10 loss to Newcastle and remained on the ground in pain for a minute before play stopped.
With Feagai out of position on the ground, the Knights raided the Dragons' left side in search of more second-half points.
The 25-year-old knew he needed to regather his footing to attempt a last-ditch tackle on Dom Young, but he physically could not.
"I was just screaming at myself inside saying, 'You need to get up' because it was coming down that left sideline," Feagai said.
"I was right at the back and I was like, 'I need to find my legs', but I just couldn't, I couldn't move.
"I lost all power and I couldn't really stand up. I was a bit scared, to be honest, on the field. It felt like my legs just stopped working."
Feagai eventually regathered his footing and left the field with assistance from a trainer, later to be diagnosed with a back injury.
Since making his NRL debut with the Dragons in 2021, Feagai has endured his share of injuries, notably suffering a high-grade syndesmosis injury and fractured fibula in a hip-drop tackle from Tof Sipley last year.
But Feagai has never experienced the sensation of losing all power in his legs before.
"Obviously I've broken limbs, torn ligaments and whatnot. But it is very scary when you're on the floor and your legs aren't working at all," he said.
Feagai will miss the Magic Round clash against ladder-leading Penrith on Sunday, when the winless Dragons will continue their fight to ignite a horror season.
He may be sidelined for another week beyond that, but has resumed light running at training and is expected to return in the short-term.
"It's good signs, it's slowly healing. They're pretty confident I should be back within a week or two," Feagai said.
A speedy return comes as a relief for Feagai, who has not been offered a new Dragons deal for next season.
He has been tabled a contract by Castleford, the English side that Dragons co-captain Damien Cook will join in 2027.
Feagai has not yet signed with the Tigers himself, but is leaning towards agreeing to terms and reuniting with coach Ryan Carr, a former assistant and interim coach of the Dragons.
"I feel like I need something new, it's not the Dragons, it's nothing on the club or anything like that. I think it might just be my personal journey," he said.
