NRL News: Mandatory concussion stand-down period announced, Eels make contract call on Arthur, Young's Wayne pain

The NRL is poised make the biggest change to its concussion protocols in close to a decade, with players to be ordered to stand down after brain injuries.

The ARL Commission met on Tuesday night to determine updates to the game’s concussion policy before speaking with clubs on Wednesday morning.

Under the new rules, players who have been diagnosed with a concussion will be automatically stood down for an 11-day period.

That will mean they are guaranteed to miss the following weekend’s matches, and potentially a second game depending on turnaround times.

Kalyn Ponga leaves the field. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Some exemptions are likely to remain available depending on the type of diagnosis, with doctors from outside the club to make judgments on less-serious knocks.

The NRL already categorises head knocks during matches based on initial symptoms, with a category one the most serious and category twos requiring an off-field assessment.

The league spent Wednesday morning delivering the news to clubs, with an announcement likely later in the afternoon.

The updated protocols mark the biggest change to the NRL’s approach to concussions since the introduction of the head injury assessment system in 2014.

The NRL will also consider ramping up its processes, monitoring technologies such as blood and saliva testing as a tool for diagnosing concussions.

The updated protocols mark the biggest change to the NRL’s approach to concussions since the introduction of the head injury assessment system in 2014.

They bring the sport into line with World Rugby, who last year introduced an 11-day stand-down period for the 15-player game.

Manly coach Anthony Seibold on Wednesday backed the move, having experienced the World Rugby system first-hand during his time as an assistant coach with England.

“I have experienced it before and would have no qualms with it,” Seibold said. “It’s about protecting the players and protecting their health, both in the short-term and long-term.”

The rules will come into effect immediately, beginning with the round-three opener between Manly and Parramatta.

The changes come days after the latest concussion suffered by Kalyn Ponga, with Newcastle weighing up how to best deal with his fourth brain injury in 10 months.

Wests Tigers second-rower Shaun Blore also said he supported the rule, after sitting out the club’s loss to Newcastle last week following the first concussion of his career.

“It was weird. I felt pretty funny. I didn’t quite feel 100 per cent,” Blore said.

“They’re pretty nasty things and careers can end pretty early.

“I would be sweet with that move. They are nasty and one of my favourite players Boyd Cordner had to end his career early with a head knock.”

Eels extend Arthur’s tenure

Parramatta have doubled down on their faith in Brad Arthur, enacting a clause in the long-serving coach’s contract to keep him at the Eels until the end of 2025.

The club confirmed on Wednesday they had extended the 48-year-old’s stay beyond the end of his initial deal for 2024, which was signed before reaching last year’s grand final.

The deal means Arthur’s tenure at Parramatta will last for at least 12 seasons, during a period where his future has often been called into question despite regular finals appearances.

In Arthur, the Eels are confident they have a coach who can finally break their 37-year premiership drought after losing last year’s decider to Penrith.

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“We have come a long way as a club both on and off the field in recent years and Brad has played a major part in our success,” chairman Sean McElduff said. “Our NRL team has consistently played finals football since 2019, falling one game short of a premiership last season.

(Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

“The players love him and we’ve seen many of them develop and become better players under his coaching and guidance.”

Confirmation of Arthur’s extension reaffirms the fact he will be the longest-serving coach in the club’s history, overtaking Brian Smith’s 10 years at the Eels.

It also comes after Arthur indicated his desire for the extension to be activated when asked about it by media on Tuesday, with Parramatta 0-2 and facing Manly on Thursday night.

“We are heading in the right direction, and while we’re proud of making it to the grand final last year, everyone at the club is determined to take it one step further this season and deliver the results that our members and fans deserve,” Arthur said.

“I love being at this club and the relationships I have with our staff and our playing group.

“The best is yet to come from this team, so I’m excited to confirm my future at the club.”

Young gun doesn’t fear Bennett cold shoulder

Newcastle winger Dominic Young does not expect to receive the silent treatment from Wayne Bennett despite joining the long list of NRL stars to turn down the Dolphins coach.

Young and his Knights teammates will be bidding to stop the Dolphins’ undefeated start to life as an NRL side when they meet in Newcastle on Friday night.

The Englishman – who will move to the Sydney Roosters next season – said he had considered linking up with the start-up franchise before joining the likes of Cameron Munster, Brandon Smith and Kalyn Ponga in saying ‘thanks, but no thanks’ to Bennett’s Dolphins.

Dominic Young. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)

The Dolphins coach had rolled out the red carpet for Young, inviting the 21-year-old to his farm before the winger decided his future would be best served at the Roosters.

“I had talks with Wayne, it’ll be interesting to see him again,” Young told AAP. “It wasn’t too bad, we weren’t too far down the line unlike some of the other high-profile players. It is what it is. There’s no animosity with Wayne, I’m sure.

“They’re going pretty well. We’ll look forward to taking them on back home in front of our own fans.”

Newcastle are set to be heavily depleted for Friday’s meeting with the Dolphins.

Kalyn Ponga, Jayden Brailey (both concussions), Jacob Saifiti (suspension) and the injured Jack Johns are among the players expected to be unavailable to coach Adam O’Brien, after his side claimed a gritty 14-12 win over the Wests Tigers last week.

“It was chaos losing three men, having a send-off and me going to the sin bin, we showed a lot of grit,” Young said.

“We have a tight group and had a really good pre-season. Everyone has been buying into what Adam is saying.

“If you look at last year, when things started going wrong we might have started looking for excuses. We want to dig in deep like that every week.”

Dolphins bracing for toughest challenge yet: Gilbert

Dolphins lock Tom Gilbert says the side’s Dolphins’ inaugural NRL win over the Sydney Roosters at Suncorp Stadium was outstanding.

The follow-up victory over the Canberra Raiders in Redcliffe was even better.

“But this next game away against Newcastle on Friday night is going to be an even bigger challenge for us,” Gilbert told AAP.

“We are a new side. We are travelling together. The boys’ routine is different. How will it work? That is a big question after a short turnaround. We just need to get up for it.

“It will be even more telling if we can turn up with resilience and get the job done next week.”

Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow celebrates scoring with a phins up Dolphins salute. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

Newcastle have a raft of key players out including Kalyn Ponga, Jayden Brailey, Tyson Frizell and Jacob Saifiti but showed incredible courage of their own last week in a win for the ages over Wests Tigers.

The grit shown in the Dolphins’ fightback against the Raiders after trailing 12-0 is what the club wants to be known for.

“That was special. We are a team that is going to focus big on the process and not the result, and it was one of those days where we got the result but probably didn’t get the process,” Gilbert said.

“The underlying thing is that we turned up. We had 20 minutes playing with 12 people. We competed. In the end … that is what got us over the line.

“We are starting to build the key characteristics of this club. That is something we are going to have to keep doing to get results. It is a tough brand of footy.

“They are the games where you look back at the end of the season and are really proud of not yourself, but the team. You win those (Canberra) games on team effort.”