The England Professional Rugby Surveillance Project’s report was published final week and it shone a light into some very dark cornersJustin Tipuric may not play again this season after suffering concussion in the final round of the Six Nations that left him unable to watch television a week later because it caused him headaches; the England captain,Dylan Hartley, suffered his second serious head injury of the season during the grand slam victory over France, and admitting he could not remember lifting the Six Nations trophy after the match,and the Leicester wing Miles Benjamin has retired after a persistent knee injury.
The ides of March. The size and power of the contemporary professional rugby player, and the subsequent rise in certain types of injury, or most notably concussion,are forcing the authorities to sight at whether changes in the rules can be made to ensure greater player safety. There is already a crackdown on tackles above shoulder level, but when players get their technique mistaken, or as Hartley did in grappling with the 24st France prop Uini Atonio,the consequences can be even more serious.
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Source: theguardian.com