Ashley Smith Forced to Retire Dur to Concussion - Dragons News

A great servant for the Dragons. Not a show stopper by any stretch of the imagination, but a good solid player. Seems like he's been around for ever, but was only 28.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/devastated-dragons-centre-ashley-smith-9344011

This follows on from some other notable retirements recently due to concussion. Are testing protocols and medical advice better now? Are clubs/club medics taking more responsibility and not brushing these things under the carpet? Are players themselves being more honest and not ignoring the signs? Perhaps the floodgates will open now that some of the stigma attached to admitting concussive symptoms seems to have been lifted by other players saying 'enough is enough'.

Here's a another one from March - an up 'n coming Blues player who reported personality changes due to concussion and has decided to hang up his boots. Worrying stuff:

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/shocking-story-young-welsh-rugby-8947857

I guess this will only get worse whilst the game stays as it is. Players are heavier and faster so the collisions, in terms of physics calculations (f= m x a and all that), are naturally higher. But unfortunately the most important variables remain constant: soft tissues, connective tissue, brains, etc. There's not much training you can do to increase their strength or injury resistance. In fact they generally get weaker after injury and rehab. So I guess this was sort of inevitable in a collision sport with the advent of professionalism and the subsequent quest for the competitive edge (in terms of brute forced, size, mass, speed, etc.)

It is very sad to see people having to retire from these sort of injuries. But it is definitely better that they do retire now rather than run the risk of any further damage. Rugby is only a game, and their long term health and well being must come first.

I think by the end of the 15/16 season that Mike Brown and George North may well be added to the list of players who have had to retire.

ScarletSpiderman wrote:It is very sad to see people having to retire from these sort of injuries.  But it is definitely better that they do retire now rather than run the risk of any further damage.  Rugby is only a game, and their long term health and well being must come first.

I think by the end of the 15/16 season that Mike Brown and George North may well be added to the list of players who have had to retire.

I was going to say pretty much all of that when I saw the heading on this thread.

Brown and North - it's hard to imagine it but they really could be added to the list. Even if they come back - one more serious out-cold and that would be careers over - and rightly so for their personal health. Sexton too is on dicey ground - one or two more groggy games from him and it should be curtains.

Thing is with Ash he was a textbook tackler as well - never see him put his head in front of the player like halfpenny and many others do

Big loss for Dragons. Great defensive leader and I prefer our back line attack wise with him in it. Glad he's getting a testimonial this year.

That said, glad that he has followed advice and retired. Hope he has no further problems.

Risca Rev wrote:Big loss for Dragons. Great defensive leader and I prefer our back line attack wise with him in it. Glad he's getting a testimonial this year.

Rev,

Agreed, have always said he was our 'general' sort of figure in the backline. Would it be worth trying to keep him on board like we have done with Rees?

bedfordwelsh wrote:

Risca Rev wrote:Big loss for Dragons. Great defensive leader and I prefer our back line attack wise with him in it. Glad he's getting a testimonial this year.

Rev,

Agreed, have always said he was our 'general' sort of figure in the backline.  Would it be worth trying to keep him on board like we have done with Rees?

BW and Rev, always rated Smith, reminds me of Andrew Bishop, one of our coaching staff said he was the glue that kept us together, you could do worse than keep him to help with your young centres.

Agreed both. I would certainly have him working with our centres if possible. Sure Jack Dixon would appreciate it, as I know he is developing defensively as a leader (not as a tackler obviously as he's handy at that).