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After the NRL finally introduced strict concussion protocols in 2012 the competition went through a period during which it had to really push some clubs into getting with the program.
Call it the game’s twilight zone.
When did that period end? Well, sometimes you see things happen on the field that make you think it is still yet to come to a complete halt, but there is no doubt education and a genuine concern for player welfare has taken the game a long way in the right direction.
There was always the possibility, though, that because the game was taking its time to adjust to what was necessary change and there was such a bright spotlight on the concussion issue, there would be developments that turned into issues down the track.
Fairfax Media reported on Sunday that former Newcastle winger James McManus is taking court action against the Knights over what he regards as their inadequate handling of the multiple concussions he suffered while playing for the club.
The latest Fairfax Media story reported that McManus “is alleging the club was negligent in the way in which it responded to a repetitive series of concussions by allowing him to continue playing, encouraging him to continue playing, not keeping him away from the game for long enough periods between concussions, and by having unqualified people making on-field decisions over whether he should be brought to the sideline after a head knock or not”.
The report said the legal action by McManus focuses on incidents in matches spread over the period from 2012 to 2015.
The game’s twilight zone.
I don’t know the strength of McManus’s claims and whether Newcastle have got little to worry about or a lot.
What I am saying is that it is no surprise a player from that period has subsequently emerged with a legal challenge of this nature.
During that time, everyone involved in the game and the people watching it became much more aware of the potential for serious health risks to players who suffered concussions and who played on with concussion-like symptoms.
It coincided with developments in the NFL, where the governing body eventually agreed to a $1.3 billion settlement of a class action by former players suffering from Alzheimer’s and other major brain injuries.
The difference with the NFL was that it originally denied the link between playing football and sustaining brain injuries and actively tried to discredit evidence supporting the suggestion of a link.
The NRL accepted that something had to be done on the concussion front and so the strict protocols were introduced.
McManus is suing his club, rather than the NRL, and he said in the Fairfax Media report on Sunday that “there could be some groundbreaking things here” in his evidence.
Right now, former players, including those who may be suffering effects from multiple concussions, or who think they might be at risk as they get older, are in three camps.
There are those like former hard-man Mark Geyer. He says he would never think of suing the game because at the end of the day it was his decision to play.
“I don’t want any compensation from the game. They gave me everything I’ve got,” Geyer told Triple M radio this week.
“I signed a contract for 15 years to get money off the NRL. The last thing I want is to say they are the cause of my head knocks, because I’ve agreed to play the game.”
Then there is McManus, who is making the big move.
And, finally, there would be those players who might think they have a case and are watching and waiting to see what happens with him.
McManus has every right to take his claim to court, if he believes he wasn’t treated properly.
The court will decide whether he has an argument and the rest of us will follow proceedings with enormous interest, because it could be a real game-changer.
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