Brisbane Lions key defender Jack Frost has been forced into early retirement, after reoccurring concussions plagued his AFL career.
The former Collingwood Magpie had consulted head injury specialists at the beginning of Brisbane’s offseason, with the harsh reality becoming apparent quite quickly.
Having tolerated an obscene amount of concussions (14) across his 56-game career, Frost was left with little choice when deciding his playing future.
When addressing his decision to retire, Frost noted how he has days where he “feels okay, and accepts the fact that he can no longer play”. Conversely though, he also has moments of frustration, not quite understanding of why his career ended like this.
(AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Both incredibly and coincidentally, Frost is the fourth Lion to retire in five years from ongoing concussion troubles; with Jonathon Brown, Justin Clarke and Matt Maguire also victims of one too many head knocks.
The decision to retire at the age of 26 was undoubtedly hard for Jack, but he understands that further concussions could lead to a lifetime of unstable health and complications.
Brisbane Lions football manager David Noble was quick to praise the lockdown defender for both his time at the club, and performance on the AFL stage across his career. Noble labelled him as someone who “has never wanted to let his teammates down”, and a brave, strong-willed contributor to the football club.
Jack was renowned for his ability to shut down the broader-sized defenders in his time in the AFL, and was often set the hard task of playing on forwards such as Buddy Franklin and Jesse Hogan.
Nevertheless, he was successful in his defensive play many a time in his career, and had a spoil that most defender would be envious of. Speed was also an asset of his, and was exceptional in cutting down the space between him and a leading opposition forward.
Frost played 54 games across four years at the Collingwood Magpies, and was unfortunately only able to play two games for the Lions across his two seasons on their list.
He still had one year left on his contract, playing out two of the three years initially signed. I wish Jack the best in his future endeavours, and all the best in health.
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