DOCTORS are battling to repair the leg of a rugby player who was seriously injured in a crash on the A19.

Shaun Austerfield, 35, was walking home with a friend from a night out in York last week when he was struck by a grey Land Rover Discovery in a lay-by on the A19 near Deighton.

The Selby RUFC player and father-of-one, who previously played for York Wasps RL and York Acorn RLFC, was rushed to hospital after the accident, which happened just before midnight on Wednesday. He suffered serious head injuries, a collapsed lung, and a badly damaged left leg.

Doctors kept Shaun under sedation until Boxing Day morning, but when he was brought round, they realised something was wrong.

Shaun’s father, Philip Austerfield, of Barlby, near Selby, said: “When he was awake, he seemed spot on, to say he’s been unconscious for three days.

“But his knee had been smashed, more or less, and he couldn’t feel the bottom of his foot. Doctors were concerned about his damaged knee blocking circulation to the rest of his leg.

“Parts of his calf looked dead, and doctors said the worst-case scenario was amputation.”

Shaun, who is a stonemason by trade, was rushed into surgery on Boxing Day, where he underwent a four-hour operation to save his leg.

Mr Austerfield said yesterday: “The surgeon seemed happy with what he’d managed to do, and the calf is starting to look a lot better.

“Shaun can feel his foot again, but the doctor said the next 24 hours will still be important and we should expect a lot more operations.

“We’ve spoken to him and he is Shaun as we know him, but still not 100 per cent. He can’t remember what happened, and is a bit forgetful. But we were told to expect the worst and the doctors said it could take a long time for him to get back to normal.”

Mr Austerfield said: “We still don’t know exactly what happened. He doesn’t often walk home from nights out.”

Mr Austerfield said his son’s build and love of rugby would be a benefit while he was in hospital: “He’s like a bull, very fit. Doctors told us the first 24 hours were vital, and he’s got through them okay.”

Police have said they want to hear from a taxi driver who had dropped off Shaun and the other man at the lay-by, and also a woman who was driving south past the lay-by at the time of the crash.

Anyone with information is asked to phone Traffic Constable Grant Gibson on 0845 6060247.