Bernard Jackman: Rugby players shoulder a lot -- even in retirement
Former Irish international Bernard Jackman on the massive readjustment that faces retiring athletes in the wake of news that Brian O'Driscoll is to have a shoulder operation
INJURY has always been part and parcel of rugby but it seems that the increase in the players' size, speed, power and technique over the last couple of seasons has resulted in more serious injuries and, for some players, premature retirement from the professional game.
Former South African World Cup-winning captain Francois Pienaar was quoted at the recent World Cup as follows: "Rugby's not a contact sport anymore. Dancing is a contact sport. Rugby is a collision sport."
It has become a game where being an athlete is vital. The focus in the gym has changed massively -- from being strong to being able to maximise your power output on the field of play.
With defence coaches' influence, players' tackling technique is far better and there is less space on the pitch.
So to win you must find a way through the defence rather than go around it.
The modern rugby player puts his body under incredible stress each week either at training or on the pitch.
Coaches after games saying the dressing room resembles a war zone has become a cliche but it's true.
Win or lose, the players are so shattered that there is rarely the energy and exuberance that you might expect.
Usually the players sit quietly in their seats and try and get recovery foods and drinks into themselves while icing the various parts of their bodies that are aching so they can be ready to train again on the Monday and start the process all over again.
All the players spend time each week working on prehab and rehab to try and prevent injuries but you can't strengthen ligaments and bones and these types of injuries are an occupational hazard.
Over the past season, Conor O'Loughlin (Connacht) Ian Dowling (Munster) and John Fogarty and Ronan McCormack (Leinster) have had to announce their retirement from professional rugby in Ireland due to injury.
What was once a trickle now seems to be a stream.
The announcement yesterday that Brian O'Driscoll needs to undergo an operation to solve an ongoing nerve problem in his shoulder means that he joins two other Irish legends Shane Horgan and David Wallace on the treatment table.
With so many players retiring prematurely due to injury (41pc of all players will have to retire due to injury) and the natural retirements due to age or loss of form, this is a good opportunity to look at the issues that these players may face upon entering "civilian life".
Having retired 15 months ago myself, I can give my perspective on this matter, too.
Most rugby players are entering academies at 18 years of age and the average retirement age is 31.
This means that professional rugby players pretty much do the same thing, using the same skill set for 13 years on average.
The most research done in the area of retired professional athletes is from the US unsurprisingly and the results are shocking.
Nearly 80pc of former American football players go bankrupt or face financial difficulties due to unemployment or divorce within two years of retirement, and an estimated 60pc of former basketball players go broke within five years of retirement, according to a 2009 'Sports Illustrated' report.
Many athletes never sign life-changing contracts, especially in American football's NFL, where the average career lasts just three-and-a-half years. If an athlete supported an entire entourage of friends and family, the effect can be enormous.
And few understand the devastating effects of indulgent spending until the money is gone.
"It's a very defined world. You won or you lost," said Duncan Fletcher, former director of the North American National Hockey League's retirement transition programme and the Professional Athlete Transition Institute at Quinnipiac University.
"When you get out of the sport, that doesn't exist". There's no scoreboard in real life."
Pro rugby players are much more grounded and on a lot more modest salaries than professional athletes in America.
But a study conducted independently by the Consulting division of BDO Simpson Xavier's Limerick office, for the Irish Rugby Union Players Association (IRUPA) discovered that only 6pc of former professional rugby players found the retirement experience easy.
The vast majority found the experience of hanging up their boots after life in the paid ranks to be 'difficult or very difficult'.
It is estimated that there are up to 140 retired professional rugby players living in this country.
They enjoyed the perks of getting well-paid for playing the sport they loved, but most find it difficult to adjust to life away from the game.
Along with the financial and medical issues they face, there is also a psychological factor.
Retirement for a pro rugby player represents a major change in lifestyle and going from hero to zero.
Bernard Jackman is a retired former Connacht, Leinster and Ireland hooker
Irish Independent
