By JOSIE CLARKE
Constable Rikki Watling said a little prayer when a drunk driver smashed into his police car at high speed in Otahuhu.
"I said, 'Help me, God,' as we were spinning around and He came through," said Constable Watling.
He and his colleague, Constable Paul Cade, needed hospital treatment for cuts and bruises.
Constable Cade had told him: "Hold on, bro'."
"And I heard a car at high revs coming straight at us."
Constable Watling's elbow went through the windscreen during the car's 200-degree spin, and Constable Cade's ear and cheek were split.
They understood a pillar between the front and rear doors took the brunt of the smash.
Constable Cade said he saw the car a few seconds before it rammed into him on Saturday night. After a year and a half in the police, he was aware of the constant risk of smashes.
"You just don't think it's going to be you. I think I'm quite lucky. If it had hit me in the driver's door it would have been a lot worse."
The officers had been attending a brawl and serious assault involving up to 30 young people outside the Hibiscus nightclub about 11.45 pm.
A man is expected to appear in court this week charged with careless use of a motor vehicle.
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