Life|Sport|10
HARD KNOCKS
Brain injury charity ‘Headway’ is demanding that sporting bodies take knocks to the head more seriously after recent incidents have left players in critical conditions
By Will Shaw
C
oncussion has become the latest topic for the unions within the world of sport
to debate. The subject entered the realms of football on Sunday when a collision between Everton’s Romelu Lukaku and Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris left the Spurs goalkeeper knocked out, however he remained on the pitch for the rest of the game. Although a CT scan highlighted no signs of concussion, the Professional Footballer’s Association and the world player’s union Fifpro have called for players to be removed from the field of play following a loss of consciousness. Unlike football it has always been widely accepted that concussions are more apparent in rugby union. The sport is currently trialling a policy which allows players who have suffered head injuries to return to the field of play after a five minute medical assessment. The trail has sparked much debate, with some respected members of the rugby community suggesting that players with brain damage are being sent back onto the pitch.
Barry O’Driscoll, ex-medical advisor for the International Rugby Board who resigned due to his concerns about the treatment of concussion, said to BBC Sport: “I don’t think anybody is given a mandate to have an experiment on player’s brains like this, especially now that the arena they are going back into is brutal.” It is not only the professional game where player safety is paramount as seen in 2011, when Ben Robinson collapsed during a school rugby match. In September this year, a coroner’s report found that the death was due to a secondary impact concussion, where a blow to the head causes swelling to the brain before it has fully recovered from a previous injury. Despite the fact that Ben Robinson’s death may have
© RIP Ben Robinson: Facebook memorial page
been prevented if the 14year-old was substituted following the initial collision, the RFU have elected to go ahead with the trial, which gives players the opportunity to play on regardless of their physical and mental state. It appears that English rugby is making an attempt to enhance player safety after Geoff Parling was withdrawn from the squad that faced Australia at Twickenham on Saturday, due to a mild concussion. Headway is a brain injury association that aims to promote the understanding of all aspects of brain injury and provide information and support for those affected. The charity has previously called for boxing to be banned across all levels of the sport due to the serious injuries it may cause to participants. They also responded to the Lloris incident and explained how they were hugely concerned that a professional football club should take such an irresponsible and cavalier attitude to a player’s health. Luke Griggs, spokesperson for Headway, said: “You are not a hero if you play on after suffering a concussion; all you are doing is risking your health. Football has to react to this and bring in stricter measures to ensure no similar risks are taken in the future.” It is not only a domestic is-
“I don’t think anybody is given a mandate to have an experiment on player’s brains” sue either with American Football being a front runner when it comes down to brain injury and its consequences. In August, a settlement of £490m was agreed between the National Football League and former players, who claimed they were sheltered from the dangers of concussion. There is mounting medical evidence to show that repeated concussion can lead to brain disease and neurological problems later in life, within NFL players. The settlement has been broken down to support medical examinations, research and injuries which occur within the next three years. The majority of the payment though has been given to injury compensation. A total of just over £420m will be split across those who have died from chronic traumatic encephalopathy as well as those suffering with Alzheimer’s
Above: ©Alke.com provide sporting safety carts To the left: ©Headway website, the brain injury association stepping in
disease and dementia. Although this may seem a very distant position that football and rugby currently find
themselves, more brain related injuries may give players a stance to take on sports governing bodies in the future.