Rugby chiefs have admitted to Sky News their sport is not “incredibly safe” due to the “high risk of injuries”, while insisting players should be encouraged they are prioritising addressing concussion concerns.
The candour on the dangers from head collisions comes ahead of the Women’s Rugby World Cup starting in England next week.
At that tournament, for the first time at a World Cup, smart mouthguards will flash red if they detect potential concussions that require further assessment by measuring the force and movement from a head impact.
“We could stick our head in the sand and pretend something doesn’t exist, but that’s not going to help anybody,” World Rugby science and medical manager Dr Lindsay Starling told Sky News.
“It is a sport that has a high risk of injuries and that comes from the physical contact nature of the game, which is also what we all love about watching it. And so that can’t be ignored.
“We can’t pretend that the sport is incredibly safe and there’s no risk of injury. And so by creating more awareness when there has been a substantial head knock, that’s important to educate people.”
There is an expectation one player per match could be removed due to potential head injury at the World Cup, which opens with England playing the US in Sunderland next Friday.
Players would then leave the pitch for a head injury assessment. Footage is then analysed to see how steady players are after the impact.
Then they would be asked a series of questions to test memory and concentration. Players are asked to remember words from a list read out and to repeat numbers in a different sequence.
A critical time for rugby
Rugby being so candid about the potential risks from head injuries comes as the sport is facing legal action from more than 700 mostly male former players who claim leaders were negligent in…
