Ex-Fremantle Docker Colin Sylvia is in hospital with serious head and neck injuries after apparently falling from a balcony in Melbourne.
The midfielder, who had a rocky and short lived spell at Fremantle after 10 seasons at Melbourne, posted pictures of his injuries online from his hospital bed.
"Not an ideal start to the weekend," he wrote on his Instagram account from the Alfred Hospital as he posted shots of himself both bleeding from the head after the fall, and later wearing a neck brace in bed.
"Very lucky, your [sic] not supposed to fall off balconys apparently!!
"I'd have to agree - fractured my neck & bleeding to the brain. Extremely lucky. Doing a great job the team down here at the Alfred ... be careful & stay safe everyone."
He gave no further details about the accident, but used the hashtags "wake up call" and "eye opener" in his post.
Friends wished the former Fremantle and Demons midfielder well.
His career in the AFL came to an end at the start of 2015 after he was sent to train with Peel by the Dockers and played just six games in his sole season at Fremantle in 2014.