GRTP: “If you carry a knife, the risk is there’s the temptation to use it.”
This article is written by Progressive Rugby
“The trouble is that if you carry a knife, there’s a risk you might use it.”
Judge Jamie Tabor QC
This was a favourite soundbite of Jamie Tabor QC who was resident judge at Gloucester Crown Court before he retired in 2018.
Now what on earth has this got to do with rugby you ask?
While it’s true Judge Tabor was a big Bath fan (something he didn’t shout about in Gloucester as you can imagine) the logic can be applied elsewhere.
We often hear sports commentators in sports saying ‘don’t give the referee a decision to make’ perhaps in rugby referring to choosing to tackle high and clashing heads.
It’s sound advice and we hope players’ behaviours and decision-making continue to improve.
The Head Injury Assessment (HIA) has come under intense scrutiny recently. An investigation by the Six Nations and WRU concedes, by it’s findings, that Wales prop Tomas Francis did suffer a concussion against England but passed his HIA and returned to the field thus putting a player at significant risk.
So while the HIA is exposed as being fallible, we then turn our attention to the elite Graduated Return to Play (GRTP) protocol.
It’s increasingly accepted an injury to an adult human brain should be given at least two weeks to recover. Experts sharing that view include Scotland and British Lions doctor James Robson, NZ Chief Scientist Ken Quarrie and World Rugby brain health advisor Prof Willie Stewart.
Yet, rugby still has a six-stage protocol that can be (conveniently some may say) completed in six days and therefore in time for the next weekend.
World Rugby will point to the fact around 70% of players don’t complete the protocol until at least 10 days have passed. That’s er…great but we are more interested in the 30% that do.
The point being that while the opportunity to complete the process in six days is there then the temptation to use it under pressure could prove hard to resist.
Put another way, would Luke Cowan-Dickie have been knocked out cold in the Premiership final and ‘completed’ the protocols (whilst flying thousands of miles) if the next match had been a wet Saturday in Worcester rather than the opening tour match of the British Lions in South Africa?
Would Kyle Sinckler have been in the England squad for the France game in this Six Nations if it had been Bath at the Stoop, would Wales’ Tomas Francis been stood down for the France game had it instead been his Ospreys side playing Zebre in the URC?
This is not to suggest that medics are deliberately putting players at risk. Elite sport often brings with it a toxic mix of huge pressure, huge expectations and huge egos. It doesn’t always make it a atmosphere where a cautious approach will be welcomed or listened to.
In other words - remove the opportunity, remove the temptation, remove the pressure, remove the risk from players, doctors and coaches.
Push the GRTP out to a 12-day minimum. Even more reason to now that doubts are increasing that a HIA can reliably detect a concussion.
If you don’t carry a knife, you can’t stab someone with it – however critical the situation appears.
Brain injury is a very serious - and on ocassion fatal - so let’s reduce the risk as far as possible.