Mr Connellan had three-quarters of the muscle between his left hip and knee torn off in a twilight attack at Bombo Beach, March 30.

In an eight-hour operation four days later, surgeons at St George Hospital took muscle tissue from his back and transplanted it to the wound, in order to cover over an estimated 15cm of exposed thigh bone.

“[Surgeons] were not sure if they could attach this muscle in a way that would enable it to be functional; their primary goal was to cover the femur so the bone did not die,” a supporter explained to the ‘surfersforbretto’ online community this week. 

“Luckily they could find a nerve to connect to, which means there is a chance a chance it could be a functioning muscle at some point in the future.” 

Mr Connellan has remained at the hospital since the attack, scarcely leaving the building as he sets out on what is expected to be a long rehabilitation.

His steady stream of visitors has included good friend Joel Trist, who pulled him from the water in the moments after the attack, and “best friend” Kendrick, a sausage dog. 

Though the 23-year-old was recently photographed on his feet – aided by a frame – supporters say he is “by no means” walking. 

“He hops along on his good leg with the support of the physiotherapy staff holding his left leg straight in front of him for a maximum of 10 minutes a day. His left leg will need to be kept straight for many months until both the muscle transplant and skin graft have healed, while also giving the nerve time to regenerate.” 

Meantime, the barrel-loving Jones Beach Boardrider club member says the attack has not dimmed his enthusiasm for getting back in the water. 

“#1 Goal: Get barrelled again,” he wrote in a post to Instagram this week. 

“My favourite feeling in the world, it'll take a long time for this to happen again but it's something to work towards.”