Complaint says 30 players retired due to concussion, Worksafe urged to prosecute AFL

Player agent and concussion campaigner Peter Jess is intensifying his bid for Worksafe Victoria to prosecute the AFL for alleged negligence in dealing with concussion.

In what shapes as a key plank of Jess’ fight to launch individual legal action on behalf of players impacted by neurological issues, Jess has met with Nikola Josevski, a senior WorkSafe investigator, and provided a fresh letter of complaint.

AFL concussion.Credit:Graphic: Matt Davidson.

Sources say Josevski opened his investigation in September last year – there had been an earlier WorkSafe report on the AFL in 2020 – with Jess hoping the latest report ultimately lands with the Director of Public Prosecutions.

“WorkSafe’s investigation is continuing,” a WorkSafe spokesman said.

Jess, acting on behalf of dozens of former players, alleges between September 2009 and December last year that the AFL owed players a duty of care and didn’t do enough to address clinical and sub-clinical concussions.

The AFL, however, has tightened its protocols considerably over the past decade, including introducing a minimum 12-day break for concussed players, and last year allowing teams on game day to replace an injured or concussed player.

An AFL spokesman, when presented with Jess’ complaints, said the league was aware of the WorkSafe investigation and would provide any required information.

Daniel Venables is among players who retired with concussion-related issues.Credit:Getty Images

Jess wants a concussion passport and greater testing regimes introduced, the latter a point he made this week to the AFL’s new chief medical officer, Michael Makdissi.

Jess said the risks posed to players over the past decade were foreseeable, and pointed to more than 30 players retiring because of concussions.

“Is that acceptable in any workplace? I don’t know any workplace that would accept that level of disability to its workers. This is not referable to workers compensation or common-law payouts,” Jess told The Age on Friday.

“I don’t want to destroy the game – I want to make it safe.”

He also cited the suicides of Danny Frawley and Shane Tuck, the pair having been diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Tuck’s case is before the state coroner.

In his letter to Josevski, Jess “alleges that at all relevant times the AFL, in breach of Section 23 of the Act, failed to ensure, as far as reasonably possible, that players in the AFL, AFLW and second-tier competitions were not exposed to risks to their health and safety arising from the unsafe Return to Play Protocols in conduct of the competitions. The clinical evidence confirms that clinically concussed players need at least 30 days for the brain to normalise. The AFL allows players to return after 12 days and therefore this process is unsafe”.

The AFL and clubs insist they follow tight protocols when it comes to head-based trauma.

Jess alleges: “The AFL had warnings of both a general and specific nature during the relevant time and up to 10 years or more previously that players were being exposed to risks from unsafe Return to Play protocols, both locally and internationally.

AFL players who retired with concussion-related issues

2004 – 2009

Daniel Bell (2004 – 2009)

Peter Burgoyne (1996 – 2009)

Ronnie Burns (1993 – 2004)

Daniel Chick (1994 – 2009)

Tim Houlihan (2008 – 2009)

Chad Liddell (1995 – 2008)

Matthew Robbins (1996 – 2007)

2010 – 2015

 Leigh Adams (2007 – 2014)

Sam Blease (2011 – 2015)

Justin Clarke (2013 – 2015)

Andrew Krakouer (2001 – 2014)

Matt Maguire (2002 – 2015)

Graham Polak (2002 – 2010)

Shane Tuck (2004 – 2013)

Justin Koschitzke (2001 – 2013)

2016 – 2021

Patrick Bines (2019)

Sean Dempster (2015 – 2017)

Brad Ebert (2007 – 2020)

Jack Fitzpatrick (2009 – 2017)

Jack Frost (2013 – 2018)

Levi Greenwood (2009 – 2021)

Ben Jacobs (2011 – 2020)

Kade Kolodjashnij (2014 – 2019)

Billy Longer (2012 – 2019)

Sam Michael (2013 – 2020)

Lewis Pierce (2013 – 2018)

Liam Picken (2009 – 2017)

Sam Shaw (2012 – 2016)

Bradley Sheppard (2009 – 2021)

Ben Sinclair (2011 – 2016)

Koby Stevens (2010 – 2018)

Daniel Venables (2017 – 2019)

Source: Peter Jess

“Warnings from historic experiences within the AFL, such as the neurological impairments to players who had to retire from the accumulated impact of clinical and sub-clinical concussions such as Daniel Venables, Justin Koschitzke, Matt Maguire, Sam Blease, Sam Rowe, Koby Stevens, Kade Kolodjashnij, Jack Frost and many others that the AFL-AFLPA have a record from accessing career ending payments,” Jess wrote.

He also cites the post-retirement diagnosis of acute neurological impairments of Shaun Smith, Nigel Kellett and John Barnes.

Jess pointed to former Eagle Brad Sheppard’s concussion in round 12 last season. “Sheppard returned to play 19 days later and received another concussion which was career ending at the age of 30,” he wrote.

“On the foregoing basis, I request WorkSafe determine the AFL an unsafe workplace until such time as safe Return to Play Protocols and the multi-modality testing regimes and concussion passport are introduced.”

While Jess continues to deal with WorkSafe, potential legal action could cease if the AFL introduces a multimillion-dollar insurance fund, which former players impacted by head knocks could tap into.

Peter Gordon, a prominent lawyer and former Western Bulldogs’ president, has been engaged by the AFL to detail how a fund would work.

Most Viewed in Sport

From our partners

Source: Read Full Article