Why aren't those guys brain dead, or are the?

Question

yesterday I watched some rugby on the Australian channel, lots of action there, no helmets, shoulder pads, knee pads either, how do those guys survive this week after week?

Answer 1

I'm guessing your american, right?. Well so is my dad and he thinks pretty much the same when he comes and sees me play. The trick to not being injured badly is to just run straight at your oppenent and not try to juke or spin off his tackle until the last second. Most of the time they will just swing straight off of you if they come towards you at an odd angle. If you  do get tackled, its just like judo, if you fall correctly you have less chance of being injured. And besides you cannot tackle them above chest height so most of the time you fall forward which, from my experience, hurts less.

Also these guys are majorely fit, strong and athletic so they are less prone to injury anyway.

Answer 2

Because they aren't woosie babies who need helmets and padding:-)

Seriously though, it's a tough game and it's surprising what the human body (especially when young and fit) will put up with.

The most dangerous injuries are those to the head or spine, and the rules have been developed to try to minimise the risks. However they are not 100% effective. Deaths and paralysis do happen (but rarely).

Players are not allowed to attack the head or neck. If this rule is broken, serious consequences apply including the sending off of the player, banning them from playing for a time and so on.

Also particular parts of the game like scrums have been regulated to avoid undue leverage on spines - however this is not immediately obvious to a casual observer. Similarly a player is not allowed to be 'lifted' in a tackle in such a way that danger to the spine occurs when they are dropped on the ground.

Finally, if injuries do occur - concussion for example - there are mandatory stand-down periods to allow the player to recover properly. A lot of brain damage actually happens when a macho player insists on returning to the game before swelling around the brain has truely been cured.

There are 2 forms of rugby and some safety rules vary - but in both codes a lot of study has gone into avoiding spine and head injuries.

Having said all that, much of this work (and rule changes and penalties) have been fairly recent. It wasn't so long ago that things like spear tackles (the player is lifted and turned head down before being pushed hard and head first to the ground) were much more common. Like I said, it's surprising what a body will put up with.

Answer 3

I played rugby for a few years and can assure you I am not brain dead.

J.P.R. Williams who is one of the greatest players Wales ever produced is a Doctor of medicine. David Kirk who was captain of the all Blacks when they won the world cup is a Rhodes Scholar.

As far as padding and protection go most at the professional level wear thin shoulder padding.

You get physically hard toward the impact injuries although knee and shoulder ligament damage seem to be the most common injuries.

When playing you, quite frankly, don't seem to feel it. You are concentrating on the game so much it just dosen't seem to hurt. The next day you notice a few bumps and bruises but you just put up with it.

Answer 4

Rugby players, especially at the level you are watching, are incredibly fit. That is key to preventing injury. We don't have much if any padding and we realize that, it goes into consideration about our movements at some point or another. We do what we do safely (in a way).

You learn rather quickly where to position your head so it doesn't get crushed or hit as much, there are ways to safely tackle, rules against high tackles, etc. And most of us (the ones with an ounce of sense anyways) wear mouthguards, which play a big role in preventing concussions when your head does get hit. All the stuff you would have percieved as chaotic is actually fairly organized and regulated. This goes for league and union.

We are also used to our bodies taking a pounding week after week. The adrenaline gets you thru most of it, and the beer thru the rest. There is a reason why we are such notorious drinkers ;) But seriously, the soreness after a rugby game is *one* of the best kinds of sore you will ever feel.