'Two years on and I still suffer from anxiety, migraines, problems with my balance, insomnia and irritability' - Cameron Pierce on his concussion-forced retirement
It is fair to say that the journey Cameron Pierce has been on in professional rugby is not the one he envisioned when he was growing up in Canada.
After impressing at the 2011 Junior World Trophy with the Canadian U20 side, the lock was offered a two-year contract in Clermont’s academy. At that the end of that deal, a senior contract was on offer from Section Paloise, which Pierce took and subsequently helped the club in their successful bid for Top 14 rugby.
Unfortunately, the story doesn’t have the happy ending that, at the time, it felt like it was building towards.
At the age of just 25, Pierce had to turn his back on rugby due to the long-term symptoms of concussions. Instead of heading into his prime as a professional player, Pierce was left without a career, in a foreign country, with little help from his club.
Here is Pierce’s story, in his own words.
“The last game I played was on October 1st, 2016. It was for Section Paloise and in a tackle, the ball carrier’s elbow stunned me, and my head ended up bouncing violently off the ground. There was no doubt that I was concussed, but I carried on playing for another 10 minutes, even when the ref tapped his head three separate times, implying it was a head injury.”
“I had lost my ability to respond in French and I ended up walking off the field of my own volition, because I was very confused.”
At this point, you would expect the utmost care and attention from Pau to make sure that Pierce fully recovered from his injury, but that, sadly, did not materialise.
“The club really didn’t have any plan for me once I was out for more than a month, to the point where I had to look everything up online, including downloading World Rugby’s RTP [Return To play] protocol sheet and just trying to follow it myself.”
“Previously, I had been so keen to return to play and earn a new contract that I had lost sight of my priorities, which should have been my long-term health, so there came a point when I had to draw a line in the sand and walk away from that environment.”
Instead, it was proposed to Pierce that he should sign with one of a few clubs that were interested in giving him quality playing time.
“I just had to focus on living a normal life and getting back to having zero symptoms, and that was impossible when I had the pressures of trying to win a contract and keep coaches happy.”
The symptoms, too, were anything but mild for Pierce, who knew quickly that his rugby career was probably over.
“Not being able to properly read for the first few months was a huge wake-up call. I knew that this was serious and that I’d made the right decision to step away, although that didn’t make accepting it or moving on any easier.”
“Two years on and I still suffer from anxiety, migraines, problems with my balance, insomnia and irritability. It’s been about managing those issues and trying to find medication or other tools that can help, as they vary in severity.”
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Whilst Pierce has had his hands full dealing with the physical symptoms of his injury, the world has continued to spin and he has had to equip himself for a life off of the rugby pitch, an unenviable task considering the issues he was having to deal with.
“I have known Jamie [Cudmore] since 2011, when I moved to Clermont and he was playing with the club. Given the Canada link, the fact we both played lock and that I was just 19 at the time, he became a mentor for me.”
“I quickly got involved with the Rugby Safety Network after Jamie introduced me to it, I helped them set up Instagram and Facebook accounts. It’s been a cathartic exercise for me, as it has allowed me to play an active role in player welfare and highlighting the dangers of concussions.”
“I was coaching in Canada with my home club the Kelowna Crows this spring and there was a better general understanding of concussion risk than in France. I think this is due to the fact that the NHL and NFL have experienced numerous lawsuits and seem to be doing something for the affected players and families. Whether that’s a publicity stunt, I have no idea.”
“Sadly, the priority in France doesn’t seem to revolve around player welfare. I would love nothing more than to make it a full-time job to educate clubs on this all over the world.”
“Sometimes I struggle to watch rugby these days because I’m an ardent believer in that if you suffer a head knock and are removed for a HIA, you should not return to the pitch, regardless of the result of the assessment. It is a well-known fact that concussion symptoms can show up days later, so why risk worsening and prolonging the injury by returning to the pitch? It’s barbaric in my eyes. I’ve taken up voluntary coaching since I left the pitch and I have a strict no risk rule in regard to head injuries.”
That said, it’s clear to see Pierce still embraces the game and has found a new passion in enlightening players within the game about the risks they face.
Since his retirement, he has helped set up an elite 7s team, the Canandian Coos, in the Okanagan region of British Columbia. The team, which boasts an elite senior side and an U20 side, has formed a partnership with BrainTrust Canada and their concussion clinic in Kelowna, and the Coos are able to send any of their players who suffer a concussion to the clinic in order to receive the best possible treatment.
“I’m trying to educate, with my work with Rugby Safety Network, but the issue is that there is no money invested in it at the moment, which ties our hands in terms of how effective we can be with it.”
“I recently took part in a documentary that is set to be shown on French TV in early December, where I talk about the symptoms I faced and continue to face, and also the effectiveness of the concussion protocol that currently exists.”
“I just don’t want people to risk their lives or make the same mistakes that I did. It wasn’t just my eagerness to return to training with Section Paloise, but also pressures I felt to hide my concussion history. In 2013, I had to fill out a questionnaire with the Canadian senior side and one of the questions was ‘how many concussions have you sustained?’”
“I knew that I’d definitely had four at that point in my career and I was panicking over how to answer. I asked a teammate what he thought I should put, and he said, “put zero, they won’t pick you if you have too many” and that’s just what I did, because I would have done anything to try and make the squad, especially with a Rugby World Cup coming up.”
“Now that I have a better knowledge on concussions, I think a more accurate answer back then would have been 10, not four, and I’d say that when I walked away from rugby, I’d probably suffered 15 or more over the course of my life.”
Pierce’s story is not a unique one, either, but hopefully by coming forward and highlighting the struggles he has faced, more players will feel confident about opening up about their own concussion issues.
Whilst his story is a sad one, Pierce’s mindset is a positive and it’s clear he still has a lot to offer the game, even if that is away from the pitch.
The former lock has also co-founded a fundraiser called ’80 minutes to ruck cancer’, where local rugby players in Okanagan have been raising money for their local cancer clinic. The fundraiser was set up in honour to Pierce’s mother, who survived cancer, with the organisation raising over $14,000 in its first year, including a number of donations from Pierce’s former teammates in France and the UK.
“Thanks to my Canadian doctor, Gavin Smart, I’ve learned how to manage my symptoms. As annoying as the migraines are, they’re a reminder for me of why I no longer play and that there are more important things in life than rugby.”
“I’ve rarely taken criticism by speaking out, but when people disagree, I just tell myself that I can’t please everybody. As long as I have good friends playing this sport, I will continue to be a pain in the ass and do whatever I can to make sure they’re safe!”
“I still love the game, but player welfare is a far more important force in my life, now. We need to protect the players because if we don’t, then we won’t have the game that we all enjoy so much.”
In other news: Ali Williams talks about the All Blacks‘ ethos and the lessons learned by the team from the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
Comments on RugbyPass
We had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getitng to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
54 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo 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.
54 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.
7 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
54 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 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
54 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.
54 Go to comments