SYDNEY: Experts have warned rugby players not to rely on neck-braces to stop spinal injuries but to focus on prevention as concerns grow over increasingly heavy collisions following the three neck fractures suffered by Australia’s Pat McCabe.
The Wallabies centre ended his career last week after suffering his third neck-break in the Wallabies’ Test against the All Blacks, an incident which underlined safety worries as players get ever bigger, faster and stronger.
“It’s shattering thinking I’ll never play for the Wallabies or the Brumbies again,” McCabe said.
The 26-year-old’s retirement comes after Newcastle Knights forward Alex McKinnon suffered a severe spinal injury in a spear tackle during a National Rugby League game in March, leaving him wheelchair-bound.
Rugby union’s blackest day came at the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, when Ivory Coast winger Max Brito was paralysed below the neck after a ruck collapsed on top of him in a match against Tonga.
And as professional rugby players grow in size and athleticism, especially among the backs, experts say more can be done to minimise the risks.
Welsh winger George North, All Blacks centre Ma’a Nonu and Wallaby fullback Israel Folau are examples of hulking modern-day backs, tipping the scales around 105 kilos (16.5 stone) and capable of incredible acceleration.
Rugby’s injuries debate mirrors similar situations in other sports such as American football, where concern over the effects of concussion is growing.
Peter Milburn, head of the School of Allied Health Sciences at Griffith University on Australia’s Gold Coast, played, coached and refereed in rugby union, and among his primary research interests is player welfare and injury prevention.
He said that sports bodies could do more to protect players, for instance by strengthening their necks or outlawing tackles above the shoulder.
“Physical preparation of players is paramount and the responsibility of all players. Strengthening the neck musculature is the single best preventative measure as there is nothing else that can provide the stability to withstand the loads on the neck,” Milburn said.
“Neck braces are not effective and may give the player a false sense of security and, in fact, increase their risk if they know their neck is vulnerable,” he further added.
He said the laws of the game should be applied and any tackle above the shoulder penalised, so it becomes an anatomical fact rather than an interpretation by the referee.
“Players should also be coached in the correct technique, not just to avoid making high tackles, but to ensure their head is behind the player in a tackle, not in front,” he said.
AFP
