Hard to pin the blame on unions

AS IF things in the game aren’t bad enough, the BBC’s Rugby On Trial shown on Monday looks set to impact on the number of new and current players across the game.

- JEFF PROBYN

The legal action taken against World Rugby, the WRU and the RFU was highlighted in the programme, with those bodies accused of not doing enough to protect players from injuries simply by allowing injured players to resume playing once given medical clearance by a doctor who may have been working for the club the player played for.

I have to be honest and say if a club doctor wrongly gave the players clearance to play, then it is the doctor who should be sued and not the sports governing body who may not have had knowledge or details of that player’s injury.

In truth, it was more a case of the Unions not protecting some of the players from themselves, who during the show admitted that they had lied to gain a quicker return to playing the game than they should have.

This could totally undermine any claim they have against the governing bodies, as any long term injury created from playing while injured would be a direct result of their own cover up.

Former prop Jason Hobson who played over 100 games for Bristol and was capped just once by England in 2008, said he believes rugby was quite brutal when he played and that training was ‘relentless’.

Training which is undertaken at clubs could add to the number of the ‘minor’ head collisions that occur and also increase the risk of potential long term damage, but those sessions are controlled and managed by the coaches at each club, so are their responsibility.