Rugby has been hit hard by Covid-19 but that may yet be only a secondary blow to land on the sport in 2020.

Steve Thompson is one of eight players in a group that have announced they will be writing next week to World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union in England and the Welsh Rugby Union claiming negligence.

Thompson was part of the England team that won the Rugby World Cup in 2003. He says he has no recollection of any of the games in which he played at the tournament.

He is 42 years old and has been diagnosed with early onset dementia.

Each of the eight players is under 45 and has received the same diagnosis.

The letter, it is suggested, will claim that the probable cause in each case is chronic traumatic encephalopathy and that the only known cause for this is concussion from blows to the head.

No Irish players are part of the suit so far and so the IRFU has not been named as a potential party but rumours are circulating that one or more Irish players are willing to be part of a second wave of players, should the case advance.

It is being led by a lawyer called Richard Boardman out of London.

World Rugby told BBC Sport yesterday that “While not commenting on speculation, World Rugby takes player safety very seriously and implements injury-prevention strategies based on the latest available knowledge, research and evidence.”

The English Rugby Football Union said that it had not received any correspondence on the matter but that it too “takes player safety very seriously and implements injury prevention and injury treatment strategies based on the latest research and evidence.”

“The Union has played an instrumental role in establishing injury surveillance, concussion education and assessment, collaborating on research as well as supporting law changes and law application to ensure proactive management of player welfare.”

We do not know yet that the case will proceed or on what technical basis and medical evidence it will lay out its claims.

It will be a worry though for governing bodies already wrestling with the challenges of the year gone by who clearly want to be seen as proactive in managing any risk to player welfare.

 

Sport for Business Partners