Close Call: Ex-NRL Star Cooper Johns Emerges ‘Unscathed’ from Terrifying Car Crash

Former NRL player and now media figure Cooper Johns came away unscathed from a car crash in Sydney on Wednesday afternoon.

The son of NRL legend Matty Johns and nephew to Andrew Johns, an eighth Immortal, Johns emerged without injury after his vehicle overturned on Dacey Avenue in the eastern suburbs of Sydney.

In an update on his Instagram story, Johns posted an image of his white Subaru, which was flipped upside down in the centre of the road.

He cheekily captioned the photo: “Can’t park here”.

While maintaining a sense of humour about the incident, Johns expressed his gratitude for walking away “unscathed”.

“Thanks to everyone for their messages this morning,” he added.

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“That was a scary experience yesterday, grateful to be safe,” he remarked.

After retiring from the NRL, Johns joined KIIS FM’s The Kyle and Jackie O Show as a sports presenter in 2024.

On Thursday, he recounted to radio listeners that he was en route to record a podcast in the eastern suburbs after leaving their North Sydney studio when the collision occurred.

He has little recollection of the actual crash, which reportedly happened when a taxi veered into his lane.

“I can’t really recall how it all went down,” he said.

“I was just cruising in my Subaru, which usually gets me from A to B without issues.

“The first thing I remember is the impact from the tyre. The police mentioned they’d never seen anything like it because the taxi driver’s vehicle was untouched.

“He just drove off, completely fine.”

Johns explained that his car’s front left tyre struck one of the taxi’s tyres, propelling his vehicle into the air.

“His wheel acted like a skate ramp. I accelerated and then flipped,” he recalled.

“I flipped 180 degrees and found myself sliding along the road on my roof. It felt surreal, like something out of a film.”

The police arrived promptly, and Johns was aided by the taxi driver in exiting his vehicle.

He described feeling “pretty out of it” and “dazed” following the collision but said that his immediate concern was for the other driver.

“My first thought was, did I just hurt someone? I had no idea what was going on,” he said.

“I wasn’t worried about myself at all.”

Though he escaped serious physical harm, Johns is now dealing with some whiplash and lingering concussion symptoms, revealing that he was experiencing vomiting the following night.