A year after its launch, the RL Cares Brain Health Fund is making a huge difference to the lives of retired, current and future players.
A NOTABLE milestone passed by without much fuss in November with the 12-month anniversary of an initiative that will have far-reaching consequences for the health of generations of rugby league players.
The Rugby League Cares Brain Health Fund was established in late 2023 in response to a growing recognition across all sports about player safety and the long-term implications for athlete health.
Launched at a gala dinner fronted by RL Cares trustee Kevin Sinfield CBE, the Brain Health Fund very quickly raised an incredible £100,000 to usher in a new era for the sport in terms of its attitude towards the wellbeing of current and former players.
The fund has allowed Rugby League Cares to support retired professional players and their families in a way never seen before and brought about a whole new way of thinking among current players when it comes to safeguarding their own health.
In its first few months, the charity funded a series of workshops delivered by the RFL’s deputy chief medical officer Dr Gemma Phillips and RL Cares Head of wellbeing programmes Keith Senior to first team squads at Super League level.
Since then, the fund has made huge strides under the stewardship of an active committee chaired by RL Cares trustee David Hinchliffe, a former chairman of the House of Commons health select committee.
“We have been going now for just over a year and I’m really pleased at the way in which we have been able to support professional players, especially former players who are concerned their health might have been affected by head injuries,” said Hinchliffe, the former MP for Wakefield.
“The brain health clinics we run with Dementia UK are seeing us make good progress.
“The key thing we recognised early on is that we have got to collaborate with other sports like rugby union – which is something that hasn’t always happened for reasons that many people will understand!
“That collaboration is enabling us jointly to fund research projects that will allow us to learn far more about the impact of head injuries in all types of sport.”
The research into and development of mouthguards that measure the effect on a player’s head when being tackled, or when making a tackle, has put rugby league at the forefront of world sport.
Players at more than 40 rugby league teams in the UK and France have been wearing mouthguards that contain accelerometers and gyroscopes to measure head accelerations. The data produced is being analysed by researchers at Leeds Beckett University as part of a TaCKLE (tackle and contact kinematics, load and exposure) research project.
The project’s lead researcher Professor Ben Jones also sits on the RL Cares Brain Health Fund committee and has been delighted by the difference the fund has been able to make in its first year.
“It’s developed really well. We are now funding a range of initiatives, from support for players through to research projects,” said Prof Jones. “The fund is able to respond quickly to any requests that come in, which is really important.
“There’s also growing awareness among players, who are concerned about their own health, of the help that’s available through the Brain Health Fund.
“Importantly, money is now available to fund a private study where we are looking at instrumented mouthguard data alongside a number of universities and rugby union.
“The data includes bio markers that allow us to simulate brain strain through computerised simulation so we can move the field forward and better protect players.
“Players have always had an awareness of their brain health, but in the last few years there’s been a societal and cultural change about the subject. Players are now more likely to prioritise their own brain health and that has to be welcomed.”
Perhaps the biggest impact the fund has made so far is the support being provided through the partnership between Rugby League Cares and Dementia UK.
The fund meets the cost of monthly clinics run by a dedicated Admiral Nurse from Dementia UK, Joe Costello (right), who shares advice and information on issues such as memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and other cognitive impairment with players of all ages.
Around 30 current and retired professional players have so far attended the clinics, with consultations taking place in person, by telephone and virtually.
“We’ve made a lot of progress with the Brain Health Fund over the last 12 months,” said RL Cares director of wellbeing Steve McCormack.
“The fund is now supporting some amazing projects and we are very grateful for all the donations and fundraising activities that are taking place to help us deliver this important programme.
“There’s been a fantastic response from players, both current and retired, to the monthly clinics and the feedback we get from them and their families really is heartening.
“It’s clear that sometimes players suffering from conditions like early-onset dementia feel like they are lost in the system: our partnership with Dementia UK is helping to address that.
“Families now tell us they have hope, which is very moving situation.”
You can make a donation to the RL Cares Brain Health Fund via its Justgiving page – www.justgiving.com/page/rlcares-brain-health-fund/
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 504 (January 2025)
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