A SCHOOLBOY is dreaming of making a return to playing rugby after needing life saving surgery on abscesses at the back of his eye.

Alfie Clare, aged 11, needed three operations within the space of a few days after being struck down by a rare and aggressive form of a bacterial infection. The dangerous condition had led to fears the Blackbrook rugby league junior may not live or be able to walk again.

"It has been weeks of no sleep, it has been such a worry," said mum Chantelle, who owns the Men's Room barbers in the town centre.

“At first he started vomiting and he said his eye was sore.

“They thought it was an eye infection but he was quite lethargic so he was sent to Whiston Hospital and they put him on antibiotics.

“Next morning at home he his eye was swollen and closed and the nurses took him for a CT scan and saw an abscess next to eye which needed operating on and that they had never seen anything as bad.

“The day after they operated again as three abscesses had come back. But after the second one his good eye had stopped moving and his feet started slipping.

“He had two more MRI scans and found out he had five abscesses around his bad eye if they didn’t operate he was going to die. He had a blood clot in a vessel above his eye which stopped it spreading, that saved his life really. If it had spread he would have had brain damage.

“But after 48 hours he just started walking again and his eye is moving and he doesn’t have any double vision now."

However, after making an astounding recovery the Blackbrook St Mary’s pupil is back on his feet and getting back to his usual self.

Nearly two months on from being struck down by the infection, which doctors say was a form of cellulitis, Chantelle says Alfie is making a remarkable recovery. He will not be able to run out with his rugby pals this season but is hopeful he will be back to full fitness next year.

In the weeks before he became ill, he attended Langtree Park as a mascot for the World Club Challenge in February with Brook team-mates, walking out on to the pitch with South Sydney captain Greg Inglis for the match.

And Blackbrook under 11s have decided to honour their battling youngster by having ‘Alfie’ embroidered on their kits for the season.

Chantelle, 38, added: “The rugby team were in touch the whole time, we’re like a family. I couldn’t have done it without them and they want to dedicate this season to him. He has had his friends come round and everybody has been really supportive."