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Concussion claims another - RugbyPass looks at players who've been forced to retire due to head knocks
Concussion has ended the career of another professional rugby player, this time in Super Rugby.
Hurricanes prop Reggie Goodes is just 26, but has had to step away from the game.
The South African-born player took a head knock during a pre-season match for the Hurricanes in February 2017, the third time he had been forced to take extended leave from the game due to concussion since 2014.
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RugbyPass looks at some other players have been forced to walk away due to head injuries.
Nathan White – Waikato, Leinster, Connacht and Ireland:
Ireland international prop with 13 caps retired in 2016 aged 35. He featured in all five of Ireland’s games at the 2015 World Cup. White suffered a head injury while playing for Connacht in March 2016 against Leinster and retired in September of that year on medical advice.
Alistair Hargreaves – Sharks, Saracens and South Africa:
Former Saracens captain, who led the club to the 2015 Premiership title. The Springbok hung up his boots just a week after Nathan White’s announcement in September 2016. Hargreaves was 30 when he retired, after repeated concussions over a two year period.
Kevin McLaughlin – Leinster and Ireland:
McLaughlin was 31 when he walked away from the game. The flanker suffered a head injury playing for Leinster in their Pro 12 opener against Edinburgh on September 4th 2015. McLaughlin was captaining the side on the day, making his 115th appearance for the club. Less than three weeks later he retired.
Jonathan Thomas – Ospreys, Worcester and Wales:
The former Wales flanker was diagnosed with epilepsy, thought to have been brought about by head trauma. His club Worcester said at the time that Thomas had suffered “a degree of brain injury”. Thomas was part of Wales’ Grand Slam winning squads in 2005 and 2008.
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James Broadhurst – Hurricanes and New Zealand:
Broadhurst made one appearance for the All Blacks, against South Africa in July 2015. Just a month later the second row was concussed while playing for Taranaki in a Mitre 10 Cup clash against Wellington, it proved to be his final game. He continued to suffer headaches, with doctors advising him to keep his heart rate below 120-beats-per-minute to avoid them. He announced his retirement in April 2017.
Mouritz Botha – Saracens, Newcastle Falcons and England
Newcastle Falcons’ former England lock Mouritz Botha was forced to call time on his rugby career at the age of 35.
A Premiership title winner with Saracens back in 2011, Botha made the decision on medical advice after failing to recover from concussion suffered during the 2016-17 season.
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Capped 10 times by England and playing Super Rugby for the Sharks in his native South Africa, the 6 foot 5 forward admitted it was a tough being forced into retirement but was able to look back on a successful playing career.
Comments on RugbyPass
To me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
30 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
30 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
30 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
30 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
30 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
30 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
30 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to commentsI think he is right, SBW is respected in RSA. The guy who never stood up is a worm. Sseems lots of NZ SBW hate, you do the crime do the time.
17 Go to comments