Rugby League star's concussion dementia

[fleabane]

It seems to have gone quiet on the concussion front, but here is evidence of long term damage.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... aying.html

[Iain]

You wait. Ten or fifteen years and this will be a widespread problem for former players.

[AidanMcDowell]

Will Smith's latest film 'Concussion' tells the true story of a pathologist who uncovered the extent of dementia and brain damage amongst former American Football players. A different sport to Rugby of course but the most compelling aspect of it was that it wasn't the big hits that did the damage but the constant and repeated small collisions that caused a gradual erosion. No symptoms present themselves at the time but, as players reached their 40s and 50s, the debilitating effects started to become apparent. The report that highlighted this was published in 2005 and focused on players from the 1970s and 80s. Many on here will probably be aware of Rory Lamont's attempts to draw greater attention to this in rugby but even he is focused more on those continuing to play with known concussions. The longer term effects upon professional rugby players may not be known for some years yet and that is a worry.

[jgriffin]

You wait. Ten or fifteen years and this will be a widespread problem for former players.

And a consequence, in my view, of World Rugby's removal of the foot ruck as much as anything else, as well as not moving the offside line permanently back 5m (thus partly nullifying the rush defence which is not originally designed for back foot offside, and allows movements to develop without crash-ball). These changes have encouraged the continual 'big hits' and illegal charges at breakdown. If you look at earlier rugby, the tackling is far more conventional and the rucking features actual engagement with no flying in.

[drc_007]

You wait. Ten or fifteen years and this will be a widespread problem for former players.

It may be an issue already

[Iain]

You wait. Ten or fifteen years and this will be a widespread problem for former players.

And a consequence, in my view, of World Rugby's removal of the foot ruck as much as anything else, as well as not moving the offside line permanently back 5m (thus partly nullifying the rush defence which is not originally designed for back foot offside, and allows movements to develop without crash-ball). These changes have encouraged the continual 'big hits' and illegal charges at breakdown. If you look at earlier rugby, the tackling is far more conventional and the rucking features actual engagement with no flying in.

Spot on. This coincides with my view.

EDIT the foot rucking I mean. Not convinced on the 5m offside line.

[jgriffin]

Well, it's not a first but close.
My real concern is not first lass rugby but kids being influenced by what they watch of high level rugby.

[Lutontiger]

PLEASE can we do something about this before it gets any worse? When the second lot of big boys come on with about 10-20 minutes to go, the intensity of the collisions and the pressure to clatter into each other is a recipe for problems. How do we pressure the RFU to care more for the players? [I note they've scheduled an end of season full cap game, is it against Wales? when the England players really could do with a rest before touring.

[welshy08]

I saw Concussion last night..read more about it this morning, and believe me this discovery (Chronic traumatic encephalopathy) could completely halt the entire NFL and all American football.

They discovered that by the end Of their careers, a Football player gets hit on the head 70,000 times. They discovered that all of them have brain damage. Not 5% or 3%..ALL of them. That the deterioration in the Brain (or insult to the Brain) is as such that it is only a matter of time before those with CTE go completely insane. If you were to cut open ANY (25 years or over) NFL players head and look at their brain, they will have CTE.
The only reason why they haven't completely banned American Football is because of the economic impact on the towns and cities where it is played.

Just lucky that in Rugby we avoid high tackles and tackle around the waist, but how many head collisions and concussions have we seen in Rugby?

[fleabane]

I missed the programme, but thanks for the stats, Welshy08.

The problem with American Football is that for years they have been taught to lead with the head in the tackle. I posted, some time ago, an article about one club which had taken on a former rugby player to teach the correct way to tackle, to try and avoid the problem.