Former AFL champion Glenn Archer faces driving charges after an alleged collision with a cyclist that left the rider in hospital.
Cyclist Mark Vander was hit by a truck on Rosanna Road, Heidelberg in January.
Video of the incident shows him being hit by a truck before crawling onto the nature strip. The truck drives away.
“He just swerved in and took me out, drove off, didn’t stop,” Vander said.
A still from dashcam footage of cyclist Mark Vander being hit by a truck.Credit:Nine News
Archer, a star and premiership player for North Melbourne in 311 AFL matches, was allegedly behind the wheel.
“I’m terribly sorry for what happened absolutely,” Archer said.
The 49-year-old part owns a tree removalist business and was driving in Heidelberg last month when the crash happened.
“On the day I had absolutely no idea,” he said.
“When you’re driving a truck there’s a lot of weight …. I was carrying a trailer with a machine on the back … multiple tonnes.”
The 58-year-old cyclist was crushed and spent two nights at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
“I just get angry all the time now … mentally it just breaks you,” Vander said.
“To leave me dying in the ditch and drive off.
“It could have been a lost worse … if I wasn’t wearing such a good helmet, I wouldn’t be here telling the story.”
Vander said he called the business a number of times, but it denied any wrongdoing until dashcam footage surfaced.
Archer said: “I thought, ‘wow I did knock the guy off the bike’, because at the start we were getting phone calls asking for money, I thought it was a scam.”
Archer has been charged with careless driving and failing to keep a safe distance when overtaking.
He will appear in the Heidelberg Magistrates Court in July.
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