Breakdown clearouts have made risks worse

There’s an old saying that trouble always come in threes and as far as rugby is concerned that certainly seems the case. First, we had the limited game of pick up and go with the inevitable box-kick finish which is boring and driving fans from the game.

- JEFF PROBYN

Second, the talk of the Premiership effectively isolating themselves from the rest of the game while still trying to take RFU money and, third, the spectre of dementia compensation is raising its ugly head once more.

It wasn’t long after the announcement that a number of players from NFL had sued American Football in 2011 for their early onset of dementia and won, that soccer and rugby came under the spotlight.

There is no doubt that taking part in any form of activity, sporting or otherwise, can lead to some long term consequences, both potentially good and bad.

Who would have thought that the impact of heading a football, even the heavy leather ones we all used up until the 70s/80s, in soccer could cause a long-term illness?

As far as rugby is concerned, players have always accepted the possibility of somebody damage, broken nose, cauliflower ears, joint injuries etc, just as with any sporting activity which involves physical contact – but brain damage?

The idea that a series of minor head injuries could result in early-onset dementia was something that no one in or out of rugby or any other sports, had ever contemplated.

One thing that has to be remembered is that it has always been against the laws of the game to deliberately make contact with an opponent’s head in any facet of play.

Even in scrums where heads are always in close proximity, the heads should not make contact – but it sometimes happens, usually as the result of poor technique or an accident.