NRL issues concussion crackdown
Shaun Valentine … career cut short by concussion.
Source:
Scott Radford-Chisholm / News Limited
The NRL has warned clubs they will be investigated and fined if they allow concussed players to return to the field this season.
In a landmark step, an official guideline on head-trauma incidents has been included in the game’s laws for the 2011 NRL premiership season following a US study of the potential repercussions on athletes allowed to play on.
With the new season only 22 days away, NRL players will be banned from re-entering the field of play if they are diagnosed with a severe head knock by the club doctor.
NRL chief medical officer Ron Muratore has discussed the policy on concussion with club doctors, and the possible penalties for contravening the new law, six weeks ago.
Muratore said the game had to break a cultural belief among players and coaches that a player was “a wuss” if he did not insist on playing on after suffering concussion.
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The NRL’s beefed-up stance is aimed at protecting players such as former North Queensland Cowboy prop Shaun Valentine, who suffered seven major concussions during a short NRL career.
The move to implement a hardline concussion rule demonstrates how seriously NRL officials are treating the issue.
Muratore was angered by an incident last season, in which a club allowed a top player to return to the field despite having sustained a heavy head knock.
Muratore said on Wednesday night that NRL clubs would be subject to an investigation, conducted by himself and an independent neurologist, and possible fines if it were proved a concussed top-liner had been permitted to play on.
“These guidelines are enforceable and if clubs don’t follow the guidelines they will be sanctioned,” Muratore said.
“We have to educate a whole generation of players and coaches who, up until now, believe head injuries are trivial, that you are a wuss if you don’t want to go back on.
“From this season, the (NRL) medical officer’s handbook will be part of the rules so it won’t just be a guideline on concussion.
“Clubs will have to abide by the rules.
“We had the annual meeting with (club) doctors just before Christmas.
“They understand the new rule coming in, and they are happy with it.
“From research that has come out of the United States, repeated concussions can be associated with problems later in life – such as depression, dementia and even suicide.”
While NRL rules allow for fines of up to $500,000, it is unlikely that a club would face such a hefty penalty.
Muratore said fines for a head-trauma breach had not been determined, but he was confident NRL coaches and medicos would not play with fire by sending concussed players back on to the field.
“There is always that temptation to send a player back on, but the doctor’s responsibility is to the player and I have no doubt the clubs will look after the players,” he said.
“There were two or three incidents last year where (concussed) players were sent back on, but we’ve tightened that up because there is no guarantee they will be OK.
“We don’t know how many concussions it takes to cause serious problems, and that’s why we don’t want people coming back on.
“The player’s welfare must always be No.1, and I’m sure the doctors will follow the guidelines in place.”