RUGBY INJURIES

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 184, 21 August 1937, Page 18

RUGBY INJURIES

wiiuura oi- UKAUirwi * SMALL 'MEN CAN DO tWELL CAN BE MADE GREAT GA1VIE Recent remarks by a judge to the effect that smashed knees are the common lot of Rugby players, and the fact that the remarks arose out of a discussion on physical training. for boys of about twelve, should not be niisapprehended by anxious parents (writes T. H. Evans Baillie in the Observer, London). To those who see Rugby football for the first time the game appears not only "rough," but almost brutal -and perilous in the extreme. It is not going too far to state that, to he good, Rugby should be rough, and that is Why it is of vital importance that two classes of players should be excluded: those who cannot refrain irom turning roughness into a "rough house," and those who are likely, through immaturity and inferiority in sizef to suffer irreparable physical damage. For protection against the roughhouse merchants we rely, firstly, on the code of laws drawn up by the Rugby Union ,and, secondly, on the administration of these laws by club committees and referees; for the protection of youngsters unsuitable for the game ithe chief bulwark is the good sense or discretion of masters at preparatory schools, and in the main this is so wisely exerdsed that overriding requests by parents, who usually know nothing of the game, are impertinent or merely unwise in their son's best interests. It is with the dangers inherent in the game, the frequency and nature of accidents met with, and the same embargo which may be postulated against the playing of Rugby by yery young boys that X wish to deaL " !Two. Points of Yiew. Within a few hours of the publica,tion of Mr. Justice Charles' remarks I heard. in conversation two utterly op•posed comments on the subject. First, a forward, playing for a well-knownl second-class dub, not big but stocky in build, told me that in- twelve seasons he had only been "off" for two or three Saturdays,' and that was because of a twisted ankle. Then -an athlete from one of the Dominions, famous in another branch of sports, related how, in a club Rugby inatch, he found himself in a melee, at the bottom of which was a man with a broken leg, and he "decided the game was too risky and packed up at the end of the season." The nature of the injury which decided my friend's course of action; brings out an important point. The majority of disabling injuries at Rugby are breakages, and it is not the neck which is broken as a rule! For broken necks one must go to cross-country riding, motoring, or motor-cycling. Rugby contents itself with legs (usually the tibia or fibula), arms, or wrists, and commonest of all, collarbones and ribs. The word breakage,- terrifying to the very young, means in most cases cpmparatively little pain and a considerablo amount of inconveniece, but cjean breaks are infinitely preferable to internal injuries or spinal damage, and these are almoSt unheard of in the game. Concussion, another form of inconvenience, or a broken limb is probably the lot of one player in a hundred over a period of five years in club football; in school football I should say that the same applies to one player in two hundred or more. Though cynics might suggest that hospitals encourage Rugby footballamong their students to maice sure they have cases to demonstrate, the sober fact remains that if there were any alarming prospect of heavy casualties the game would long ago have -been cold-shouldered out of existence in their amenities. If the ordinary run of injuries incurred in Rugby are treated quickly and wisely there is no reason why players, even those who seem fated to be always "in the wars," should not reach their retiring age with no permanent physical hurt to set off the enjoyment they haye derived. * Going All Out The most dangerous-looking feature of Rugby is probably the head-on tackle of a man in full stride. In point of fact, if the tackle is thorough, the determination of the tackled man unabated — in other words, if both are "all out," the rest is a comparatively gentle bump on the turf for both, one force exactly counteracting the other. If there is a measureable flinch by either then there may be some sort of injury. One of the best features of the game is the chance it gives to small men to excell — C. N. Lowe, J. G. .Will and A. T. Young are a few striking instances. The smal'l man goes armed by the • knowledge- "the bigger they are the harder they fall," and if a big 'un is weE tacked by a little 'un the odds are that it will be the larger of the two that gets up more slowly and thoughtfully. But this levelling up of the differ-ently-proportioned does not hold good for small school boys, and it is here that the greatest care should be taken to see that Rugby is conflned to suitable schools or boys. A "suitable" school is one with at least sixty boys, for this will allow of splitting up into a big game and a little game. When the bones are not hardened, the framework not knit, a boy of eight or nine cannot and should not be expected to play against a comparative giant of twelve or thirteen. If,this is not prevented there is a grave risk^not only of permanent physical injury, but of a permanent mental twist. If boys, however, can be suitably graded and play always under supervision, there is no reason why Rugby should not be one of the games at preparatory schools, though association is admirablc training for the other code. I have heard it said, however, that, Rugby being essentially a game of group movcment, the wholc

field moving with or after the ball, "prep" schools where it is played have the minimum of colds and chi'lls during the bleaker of the winter months. So pcrhaps that factor may be taken into consideration when wondering whether Rugby is too "rough" for the Iwclvc-ycar-old0'