A war of words has broken out between the AFL and its players’ union over how much money the league is collecting by fining players for on-field indiscretions and how it spends that cash.
Some of Australian sport’s most high-profile concussion sufferers are supporting a cooling headgear which,its developers say,can drastically aid recovery from head knocks.
The Sea Eagles have helped trial a concussion treatment that involves players wearing a headgear that rapidly reduces body heat and head knock symptoms.
Rugby players at a Melbourne school wear data-collecting mouthguards to help researchers unearth ways to monitor concussion and make detection faster and more objective.
After being reprimanded for their delay in assessing McKay for a head knock last week,the AFL will ensure Carlton followed protocols before declaring him a late out against Port Adelaide.
Carlton will be forced into at least three changes after an important midfielder was ruled out,while the AFL reprimanded a star Giant for a scathing assessment of the league’s crackdown on dangerous tackles.
The fact that the Blues forward has been cleared to play this week,despite such visible signs of a head injury,underscores a shocking inconsistency in the AFL’s concussion guidelines.
McKay kicked two goals after an apparent head knock in his team’s win over North Melbourne,and the Blues now have a quick turnaround to their next match on Friday night.
New research from Boston University links repeated head knocks to physical and mental deterioration.
Almost 30 years later,Warren Spink has still not recovered from the traumatic head injury he suffered playing for Australia against Japan in 1996.
West Coast premiership coach Adam Simpson has decided against a farewell game as coach;Sydney will challenge the tribunal decision to uphold Isaac Heeney’s one-match ban at an appeals board hearing on Thursday,while Collingwood forward Josh Carmichael has retired at just 24.