Rugby star paralysed by ‘angry’ rival with ‘belly flop’ tackle set for ‘£10m payout’

Female rugby star Dani Czernuszka left tragically paralysed by a horrific tackle has won her High Court battle for compensation.

The 34-year-old was on the receiving end of a tackle by ‘angry’ opponent Natasha King in October 2017. Czernuskza, 28 at the time, sued her rival personally for damages at a London High Court trial and was successful following a ruling from Mr Justice Martin Spencer.

The injuries suffered by the Reading Sirens flanker left her needing to use a wheelchair. As a result of the trial, Czernuskza is entitled to huge compensation, with her lawyers saying she could expect a payout of about £10million.

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The incident happened during a ruck in a league match between her team Reading Sirens and Bracknell Ladies, and it left her with a broken spine. While Reading were in control of the game, the court heard Ms King urged her teammates to ‘smash the number 7’, in reference to Czernuszka, in what was the latter’s first competitive game.

Czernuszka claimed her ‘much heavier’ opponent had threatened to ‘break’ her after the pair clashed on the field. She then said in court Ms King wanted ‘retribution’ when she ‘belly flopped’ on her during the game, throwing her whole body on Czernuszka while pulling her legs.

The judge decided Ms King intended to extract retribution due to her frustration with how the game was going. “This was a reckless and dangerous act and fell below an acceptable standard of fair play,” he said.

“I do find…that the ‘tackle’ was executed with reckless disregard for the claimant’s safety in a manner which was liable to cause injury and that the defendant was so angry by this time that she closed her eyes to the risk to which she was subjecting the claimant, a risk of injury which was clear and obvious”. He added that Ms King had been “looking for an opportunity to get her revenge” on the claimant.

“The defendant simply gets up and walks away towards her own try line – she shows no concern for the claimant whatsoever,” the judge said. “These actions are not those of a responsible rugby player. In my opinion, it was a reckless and dangerous act and fell below an acceptable standard of fair play.” Should Ms King wish to appeal the verdict, she has 21 days to do so.

Ms King, who was not penalised by the match referee at the time, denied the tackle was reckless, as well as denying the tackle was bad. She also rejected the notion she showed a ‘reckless disregard’ for her rival’s safety.

She said from the witness box: “I don’t play rugby for revenge”. Furthermore, her barrister Geoffrey Brown argued that by playing in the contest, her opponent ‘impliedly consented to the risk of injury’.

“It was a rugby injury, arising through the risks inherent in playing the game, not through any fault on the part of Ms King,” Brown said. However, the judge disagreed.

Following the judgement, Czernuszka, said: “I am grateful for today’s ruling and to finally put to bed all of the untruths and fabrications surrounding what happened during the game that day.

“Learning to live with my life-changing injuries has been difficult and something I could not have done without the support of my family and close friends.

“Sport has always given me great pleasure in life, and I don’t blame the game of rugby for what happened that day. Ultimately, I feel I was let down by improper and poor behaviour from the opposing player, coaching staff and the referee.”

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