Sam Butler only has to look down for a visual reminder of the horrific leg injury that could have ended his AFL career before it really took off.

A large bump on the Hawthorn forward's left shin marks the spot where his left tibia and fibula broke in half in April last year.

"I heard a snap and I was on the ground," Butler said of the stomach-churning incident.

"I was like, 'holy crap. If that's me, I'm done'. I looked down and my toes were nearly touching my knee."

Doctors told Butler the broken bones cut through his calf muscle like a knife.

What followed was the "longest five minutes of my life" as the small forward desperately sought the green whistle, then had to wait well over an hour for an ambulance to take him from Box Hill City Oval to hospital. Loading Twitter content

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