Concussion

[Axe Man]

Just read that Daniel Venables from West Coast will sit the season out with concussion

West Coast will be without Daniel Venables for the entire 2020 season.

Venables is suffering from ongoing concussion symptoms and will be placed on the the club's long-term injury list.

The 21-year-old is still feeling the effects of a head knock he sustained in Round 9 last year that ruled him out for the remainder of 2019.

“We have recently consulted a specialist in Melbourne after a comprehensive rehabilitation period,” GM of Football Craig Vozzo told westcoasteagles.com.au.

“Unfortunately, after much consideration and following the medical advice, we have decided that the best course is for Dan to have the season off and not play this year.

“It is a decision that has not been taken lightly. Dan has put a lot of energy into getting himself ready to play as quickly as possible. It’s been frustrating for him, more particularly, and obviously the club.

“He has thrown everything into the best rehab preparation in readiness for the season, but he’s still symptomatic at the moment.

"Given the type of injury this is - being the head injury - the best course of action following the specialist’s advice is to have time out of the game.”

Venables was a member of West Coast’s premiership side in 2018 and has played a total of 21 games.

He comes out of contract at the end of the season.

I guess years ago he might have had a week off at best and been back playing, symptoms or not, and opened himself up for repeat concussions and potential further damage. At least everyone is much more aware of the dangers now. Hopefully he recovers and can get back out there.

[bornadog]

Clubs are now building into contracts a cover for concussion retirements.

from AFL.com.au

The AFL has been gradually putting measures in place to guard against clubs giving out uber long deals to players, including making clubs require written board approval for contracts of six years or more, diluting the value of years given to free agents beyond five seasons and also introducing limits on salary cap relief provided for players who are forced to retire due to concussion.

Under the rules brought in this year, clubs will only be protected for the first three years of a deal following a player's retirement under the concussion policy.


The maximum threshold of salary cap relief provided by the AFL for those players will be 90 per cent of the remaining contract in the first year, 75 per cent in the second and 50 per cent in the third, with all years beyond that to be fully taken on by the club. Basically, any deal longer than three years comes with risk assessments on how the money is structured or potentially paid out if concussion issues occur.


It means that under the Andrew deal, the Suns have built in protections that mean in the case of concussion forcing the player out of the game, they are not on the hook for the full nine years.

[josie]

Suns are protected by AFL. They can take that kind of (stupid) risk with Mac Andrews.

Means contracts will be front loaded more, if that?s not already the case.

[Throughandthrough]

An interesting article i read recently that hasn’t had much traction is that one of the major insurers used by many afl players has announced that no new insurance for afl players will cover them from the long term affects of concussion. I was surprised that there isn’t a group insurance and players have to get their own insurance. No doubt many other insurance providers will go down the same path

I spent some time with Paul Seedsman recently and he’s really, really struggling. Has a one year old baby, his wife has had to go back to work, and a few days a week he can hardly get out of bed. He is just a shell of a man now.