England's George Ford receives treatment during a match against South Africa in November. GETTY IMAGES
Rugby Football Union Medical Services Dir Simon Kemp believes that rugby union "should consider new and innovative law changes to make the game safer," according to Owen Slot of the LONDON TIMES. His call for action followed the release of the RFU’s annual injury report, which showed that "severity of injuries had risen for the fourth year out of five" and that there has been a "considerable escalation of injuries" during training sessions with Eddie Jones' England team. Though the report "showed some success in a small reduction in the number of concussions," the severity of concussion injuries "has gone up, as has the severity of all injuries." The average number of days that it now takes to recover from an injury in the professional game is 37, compared with 29 two years ago and an average of 20 for recorded figures the previous decade. Kemp also said that rugby referees "need to be brandishing more red and yellow cards for high tackles." There is a "considerable dispute" in the game about whether rugby has gone "soft" because of some of the cards being shown for high tackles. However, Kemp, speaking on behalf of the RFU, "said that the game needed to go even further." He said, "You are three times more likely to see a card for a deliberate knock-on than you are for a high tackle, currently, around the world. We [the RFU] and World Rugby, at the moment, don’t believe that the sanction for yellow and red cards, alone, occurs frequently enough to be likely to change player behavior" (LONDON TIMES, 1/9). In London, Robert Kitson reported action "has already been taken to reduce the startlingly high rates of injury" suffered by players training with England. The severity and number of injuries combined were five times above the domestic average last year. Acting RFU CEO Nigel Melville said that Jones' regime "has been the subject of some concern." Melville: "We did recognize a problem and we have discussed it at the Professional Game Board. International players train at greater intensity, so we’re trying to manage players better as they transition from one environment to another. We think that is starting to show some positive signs" (GUARDIAN, 1/9).
