Before play began, the players from the NSW Waratahs and the Western Force Super Rugby teams formed two circles to honour, with silence and bowed heads, the memory of Daniel Vickerman.
The silence of the circle was broken as the players broke away to take their positions on the field. When the crowd clapped, their applause was for a man few of them knew but all of them admired.
The silence on these occasions, I always think, is for us, the survivors. We try to make some sense out of an action that seems, in Daniel Vickerman’s case, to be beyond any meaning or understanding.
The applause was for Daniel Vickerman. For ‘Vicks’, the tough, uncompromising enforcer who never flinched when the battle on the field got its toughest.
He was a player of physical strength and strength of character who seemed to take it upon himself to try to lift his team when the game started to turn against them. He was inspirational to his teammates when inspiration was desperately needed.
The crowd, it seemed to me, wanted to make one final acknowledgment of their pleasure they got from seeing his fearless and passionate play. And so they spontaneously broke out into that most generous of sounds, hands clapping in restrained but heart-felt unison.
Over the course of the last week there have been thousands of words written by writers trying to come to terms with an event which shocked and surprised the rugby world and has forced it to start thinking hard about its implications for players and for the management of the game.
Among the best of those words was Georgina Robinson’s article in the Sydney Morning Herald, titled “Vickerman’s ‘transition’ done better than most.”
Robinson noted the irony that Vickerman “more than most of his peers across any professional sport, nailed the transition from elite athlete to regular human.”
He studied at Cambridge in 2008, taking time out of his rugby career. And then when constant injuries forced his retirement, he seemed to make the difficult transition from professional athlete to businessman. “He spent the next four years carving out his career in the property and development industry … He had navigated those dark and choppy waters and appeared to be sailing along in perfect conditions.”
Clearly, though, the transition was not made.
Robinson quoted some interesting comments about the difficulty of transition for successful athletes from Greg Mumm, a former coach turned consultant, who was a friend of Vickerman’s: “What happens when the stadium lights are turned off on our careers and when the fans find someone new to cheer for? Does our training help or hinder us in preparation for life after sport.”
These are very important questions. They go to the heart of the matter.
If there is anything good that can come from Daniel Vickerman’s death it must be that the rugby authorities around the world have to start understanding that glory and some money are not enough compensation for the broken bones and (often) the mental trauma that the professional player experiences to establish and consolidate his career.
We (and I include rugby writers like myself in all of this) have too often cherished the notion that the glory itself, transitory and difficult as it often is, is a just reward for attaining the highest performance levels of the game.
A.E.Housman’s plangent poem, ‘To an Athlete Dying Young’, has beguiled us into accepting that the transitory fame achieved by a great player is somehow an ultimate reward, no matter what happens later to him in life.
The time you won the race
We chaired you through the market-place:
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high …
Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay,
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.
This Corinthian view of sport is a thing of the past, if it was ever a valid notion, anyway.
If having a splendid rugby career is somehow a death sentence involving depression, drug-use or over-use of supplements like creatine, then it can’t be worth the blazing candle of fame.
In the case of rugby, then, a sport that was only made professional in 1996, there is a great deal of work that needs to be done to make the game safer for the players, on and off the field.
Two writers in New Zealand, Mark Reason and Phil Gifford (in my view the best writer on rugby in NZ), have provided some graphic details about how the legal food supplement creatine can create all sorts of health difficulties, short term and long term, if it is abused.
Gifford reported on how the thoughtful All Black Mark Brewer believed that creatine had too many similarities with steroids for his liking, so he never used it even when it was widely used and over-used in the early days of professional rugby.
Another player told Gifford that he developed massive thighs that caused a succession of hamstring problems for him until he stopped taking the dosages ordered by his team’s fitness trainer.
According to Reason, the former All Black’s winger Joeli Vidiri’s life-threatening kidney issues “are almost certainly connected with creatine use.”
The point here is that rugby officials must be ruthless with their annual check-ups on professionals and school-age players to ensure that they don’t compromise their health, short and long-term, in the pursuit of Housman’s laurel wreath of glory.
There was an interesting story by the SMH’s Tom Decent – ‘Waratahs debutant Simone says the sacrifice and tough times worth it‘ – before the Waratahs-Force match that indicates the Australian authorities are starting to be on the ball in providing guidance for players who could be susceptible to depression.
The Waratahs’ starting inside Simone told Decent how he turned his back on rugby league after becoming “disillusioned … admitting he suffered from depression in that period … It’s easy to put on a mask in front of someone else … but we can’t see what’s happening behind closed doors. That’s the dangerous thing.”
Simone was given a chance to play rugby for the Norths side, where he starred in the team that won the Shute Shield after a 41-year drought. He became the NRC Player of the Year. And on Saturday night played at inside centre for the Waratahs in their tough victory over the Force.
The opening round was somewhat disappointing for the Australian teams.
The Rebels were overwhelmed by the Blues 56–18.
The Reds scrapped through against the Sharks 28–26.
The Brumbies were resilient but far too dour, except for one fantastic ensemble try, in going down to the Crusaders 17–13.
Neither the Waratahs (19) nor the Western Force (13) showed much skill in their mistake-ridden clash. Will Skelton looked fit and powerful in his play. But Israel Folau, alarmingly, carried for only 11 metres in the first 70 minutes of play!
My match of the round was the Stormers-Bulls 37-24 clash at Newlands before a partisan, vocal crowd. Cheslin Kolbe, playing on the wing, showed that being the smallest player on the field was no impediment to him being the best back going around.
The Stormers had a pack that demolished the Bulls in the scrums and backs who were prepared to launch break-outs, New Zealand-style, from inside their own 22.
The great fly half and then commentator and broadcaster Cliff Morgan once noted that rugby is a “magnificent irrelevancy.”
Life is the great relevancy. This is the message that should resonate in this week when the death of Daniel Vickerman cast its shadow over the first week of Super Rugby 2017.
Bushranger
Guest
I think you are a bot hard on Folau and the Waratahs. It was a wet and slippery night against a spoiling team that was penalised off the park. On top of that Foley was absent so no wonder nothing really got going.
steved
Guest
so true
ClarkeG
Guest
[ There seems to be an unquestioned assumption in the Australian sporting media that Dan Vickerman’s tragic death was a direct result of difficulties in transitioning from professional sport to “normal life”, but is there any evidence this was the case? ] You make a very good point Will. Some times I take comfort in the fact that at least one other person on the planet is thinking the same thing I am thinking. If suggestions are repeated often enough it is not long before many, if not most, will assume that something is the case even if it is not.
ClarkeG
Guest
Hope you are all good Curly. :-) And all the best to you.
ClarkeG
Guest
Rattue is a Kiwi rugby journalist? Hmmm....depends on what one perceives a journalist to be I guess.
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Guest
Utterly agree Zero Gain. The vitriolic ridicule of individuals in the limelight looks like innocent gossip. But it may not be. Negativity has outcomes. Some people bounce, but sadly some people sink.
Gormon Kinchley
Guest
Absolutely, Northerner, the context is irrelevant, depression should always be considered.
Bakkies
Guest
Well when Vickermann first broke it to the test side the players were already openly encouraged to complete some form of qualification. May have been compulsory in the ARU contracts in fact. As for the Super Rugby sides and even over in Europe you still hear players in their mid to late 20s saying they are not sure what they are going to do when they retire from pro Rugby
Curly
Guest
as someone who has attempted suicide twice i can say that my reasons would not seem reasonable to others. i am an intelligent bloke and at 'the times' was externally going "ok" in work and financially. im sure others who have contemplated this path have smiled and thanked people for their concern but have internally chosen a path. i took colts training ( i was coach) three hours afters after a failed attempt... no-one seemed to notice. who knows what dan was thinking or why and most these posts are people trying to understand or validate their notions of life and what "caused" it. unfortunately you dont know and probably never will. good luck everyone
In Brief
Guest
So true
In Brief
Guest
Good points, but I would say concussion is a big part of it. Concussion takes away your ability to think with clarity, to undertake every day tasks and can even take away your very capacity to function in a truly cognisant state. If you take away someone's capacity to think, frustration sets in. This can lead to domestic violence and ultimately suicide. A lot of people don't realise that mental capacity impacts more on your quality of life than physical capacity ever could. For example, a colleague of mine who became a quadriplegic in a accident told me that 'at least I still have my mind'.
c
Guest
so when is the right time for that discussion grapeseed as you're getting a lot of love
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Guest
A very good question, Onside. The truth is we do not know. We may never now. But professional rugby may have been as much a healing as retirement was a challenge. We do not know. We cannot be too quick to blame professional sport for this tragedy.
northerner
Guest
I used to work for a rather large Canadian organization, and one of the things that struck me was how poorly people, especially men, were actually prepared for retirement - not financially, that was an era when they all had decent pensions - but emotionally and psychologically. They had had years to prepare for retirement - but the biggest problem was always the loss of status, importance, control - call it what you will - and many of them had no Plan B for life, post work. It was heartbreaking to see how many ended up with broken marriages, mental health issues, early deaths from strokes, and that sort of thing. It happens to all of us, not just athletes, and I'm not sure that the guy on the assembly line or down the mines is any better prepared. It's a much bigger issue than just sports.
Rhys Bosley
Guest
Totally agree Grapeseed. I frankly find the way some hack with a pop psychological theory feels the need to have a piece of this sad story distasteful. And combining it with comment on the latest Super Rugby round doesn't treat the topic with any respect. Try interviewing an expert for a change Spiro, or even get one to write the article, your contribution is borish in the extreme.
bob holden
Guest
The Houseman verse is recited at the end of the film "Out Of Africa", by Karen (played by Meryl Streep) at the funeral of Denis Finch -Hatton,(played by Robert Redford ). Not since the Munich Air crash *(1958) has the death of a sportsman(s) affected me so much. I know some members of the Vickerman family ,but never met Daniel.
Pinetree
Guest
Agree entirely with what you said Grapeseed. I have known 2 men that have committed suicide, and I would not be surprised if most people know someone who has taken their own life. I find it bizarre that nobody can even mention the word suicide in the media. It is as if the word itself is feared and is believed to have a ripple effect for others to do the same. People die of overdoses and drunk driving, and the media have no worries mentioning that. Surely the problem can not even start to be addressed if no one can even speak the word, Apparently it is alright to talk about a celebrities death in an overdose so we can talk about it and become more aware of the dangers through discussion, but no one cares enough about suicide in the main steam media and just sweeps it under the carpet. Maybe I'm am being a bit harsh, but it is already a huge problem, so when can we actually start discussing the topic outside closed doors?
davSA
Guest
The article is both topical and highly relevant . It is not just in Rugby that some athletes struggle post retirement . However many others don't . Of late on this forum mental health in athletes has been well discussed and we would do well to remember that Rugby players are not exclusive of the broader population where the prevalence of mental health sufferers is extraordinarily high. According to both WHO and many other organisations as high as 1 in 4 people. So it goes without saying that a percentage of players will struggle with withdrawal from the limelight for whatever reason. World Rugby however has a responsibility to put programmes in place for those who may need it which specifically deal with the unique circumstances Rugby players may face be it mental or physical health wise that are related to this sport. It is not just an Australian issue and should be dealt with by the controlling body . I would start with a data base ,tracking all international players on certain pre arranged issues for x nr of years. It could then be expanded to regional comps i.e.. Superugby with provincial players falling under their own Union. To finance it I would propose that a levy is imposed on all these players through their careers and the fund managed on an actuarial basis.
Dubaikiwi
Guest
How does anybody plan for retirement where it is not planned, if it is through injury or retirement at a young age for a sports person or redundancy on a job. In all cases you feel no longer wanted and it does not matter about the support network around you as it is all personal and internal. Dont get me wrong support structures are important whether they are professional or family and friends, but they cant get you past the change from participation in a team environment whether it is sport or work to being non important, only you can and unfortunately in some cases you can't.
sheek
Roar Guru
Spiro, This brief story isn't about rugby, but the sentiments are exactly the same. About nine months ago I was in a waiting room for my car to be serviced. I noticed another guy come in who looked at me quizzically & asked, "do I know you"? "Yes", I replied. We were in different fire services but had interacted regularly over the years. However, I hadn't seen him since he retired 6-7 years previously. He told me how difficult retirement had been for him & how he had fallen into severe depression. He had retired at the very top of his profession as an inspector. "I went from having about 100 people report directly to me to looking after the grand kids who were all under six", he said. "I couldn't cope with the different responsibility, of not being important to my grand kids as I had been in the fire service", he continued. He went on to say he finally pulled himself out of the abyss when he stopped feeling sorry for himself & became proactive again. Now he acts as an advisor & mentor for his former fire service, providing advice for fires nearing retirement. He says the key is for intending retirees to have something to go to, something else that will force them to get out of bed each morning & continue to give their life a purpose. It doesn't have to be part-time work, it can be a hobby like golf, walking, tennis, cycling, bowls, etc. But something that makes you get up & out each day, or most days. As I was near retirement myself at the time, i found the conversation enlightening to a massive degree. I saw a quote the other day attributed to former legendary rugby league coach Warren Ryan - "you don't retire FROM something, you retire TO something", or words similar. Very profound.