Jason Barrell

Jason Harvey Barrell (born 5 November 1969) is a New Zealand former professional rugby union player.

Biography Younger brother of Crusader Con, Barrell partnered his sibling in the Northland front-row during the 1990s. He was a regular fixture for the Chiefs in the 1998 Super 12 season and at the end of the year had a stint with Welsh club Llanelli, which ended prematurely when an opportunity came up to join Auckland.

Barrell didn't make it past his first pre-season with Auckland, suffering a hangman's fracture while packing a scrum against Northland, a potentially fatal neck injury involving a bone that held his head to the vertebrae.

After graduating from police college, Barrell had another life-threatening health concern, having to undergo a four-hour operation to alleviate a brain bleed that left him with partial facial paralysis.