The report, authored by Professor William Garraway of Scotland, calls for a moratorium on the development of protective equipment until it is proved that it does not contribute to the increase in injuries.
The argument that the layers of padding worn by many modern players gives them a sense of invincibility and leads to them playing harder and more recklessly and so incurring more injuries has been criticised by the New Zealand All Blacks’ doctor John Mayhew. Mayhew says there is no evidence to validate that protective equipment is harmful, and describes the claim as: “an unscientific thing to say”.
Mouthguards and Shinpads "Proved Beneficial"
Mayhew concedes that while wearing mouthguards and shinpads had proved beneficial, the evidence of the effectiveness of other equipment such as headgear, shoulder pads and ankle braces was not so clear cut.
Mayhew points out that players are playing more games and that rugby is now physically harder. He acknowledges that Professor Garraway is a well respected injury researcher in Scotland, but that he might be acting “a little mischievously and seeking attention”.
Mayhew also says that The New Zealand Rugby Football Union is putting together a research subcommittee to look at rugby injuries.
“They are of concern”, he says, “and we’ll look at the study carefully, but I doubt whether it’s valid to the New Zealand situation”.
Does Protective Equipment Increase Injuries?
That the use of protective equipment somehow increases the likelihood of injury is not a new argument, but seems to be based on no more than that the incidence of injuries has increased during the last few years when more rugby union players have taken to using it.
Such an argument looks like a rather naïve confusion of cause and effect. Since Rugby Union turned professional it’s obvious that the players train much harder and are bigger, faster, fitter and more powerful than in the past.
And with professionalism and big money payments, the pressure from the public, media, and fellow players for a greater level of commitment and effort has increased. The days when a player who trained twice a week and turned out to play on the weekends could run out of puff half way through a game and shy off a few tackles without repercussions from the coach and fellow players have gone.
That injuries in rugby union have increased, despite the use of protective equipment, is hardly surprising.
The use of protective equipment in American Football is long established and the effectiveness of it not questioned. Gridiron, of course, is not rugby, but the similarities between the two are obvious.
Independent Researchers Commissioned
An International Rugby Board medical meeting held in September this year has commissioned two independent researchers to review all the available evidence on the wearing of protective clothing in rugby.
Stuart Duncan - My interests have always been wide, but when later in life I turned to writing as a career it was sports writing that I initially fell ...
