Earlier this week the former French rugby loose forward Sebastian Chabal revealed he has no memory of his rugby playing career. He played in 62 French Internationals and has no recollection of playing in any matches. This is not just the rugby matches, but all memories from childhood and when his daughter was born as there is nothing. His memory has all been deleted and he is lucky he can live a some what normal life right now.
When others around him are discussing various games he feels like an imposter and they are talking about someone else. With Sebastian having no memory what so ever he feels they are discussing someone else and not him.
He was a great player to watch in his prime and many players feared him as Sebastian ever held back. He was a player who was always 100% committed to the contact area. Fans used to love when he went in hard and caused mayhem and if he only knew where this would end up I bet he would have played another sport.
He has been asked has he seen a doctor or neurologist for advice and his answer is what for as they cannot fix this. He unlike the others taking rugby to court feels there is nothing that can be done and he is 100% correct.
We as players knew that there was dangers even though at the time head injuries were not the main concern and the big worry was breaking your neck and living in a wheel chair for the rest of your life. Concussions were not seen as serious and if you can stand and not feel nauseous you could carry on playing.
Back in the 1990's which is not that long ago players were told to always be committed to the contact point. The theory was the harder you went into the collision then the less likely you would sustain an injury. This was physics at it's best and it is hard to believe this is what was being preached.
I often wonder about players I used to play with and if they are suffering as a few were proper maniacs on the field going in head first. I was discussing this with a family member a few weeks ago and both of us are very happy we retired when we did. If I have any memory loss it will be through my age and not my playing career. I suffered from a few concussions during my career but it is not necessarily one specific knock and is the combination of many over many years.
We know there is a court case taking World Rugby to court in a group action involving 295 ex players. Sebastian is not joining the list as what is the point as this is a contact sport and these are the consequences. As a professional athlete you are getting paid to play the game, but at the same time you need to look after your body as you should know how you feel. I stand with World Rugby on this case and not the players because we all knew and this is the contact sport we love.
Head injuries are the hidden injuries that no one knows are even happening, but you have to be a complete moron to think bashing your head multiple times a day is good for you. We know boxers suffer from a term they call punch drunk which is brain damage and the rugby players are no different.
The problem with rugby it is not necessarily banging your head ,but when you are being tackled or are going into a collision. Each one is the equivalent of a car crash where you head can get whip lashed knocking your brain around inside. There has been no physical contact to the head, but damage is being done internally. There is no way you can make rugby 100% safe and players need to understand this.