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Player welfare

“We must not and will not stand still. As a sport rugby, must continue to renew our mandate from parents and players to grow participation in the game, by demonstrating progressive change.” – Sir Bill Beaumont

Player welfare

2022 is the year of player welfare

Sir Bill Beaumont and World Rugby have reinforced their positive stance on player welfare in rugby and unveiled enhanced plans to make progress in this field.

At the start of the year Sir Bill Beaumont, World Rugby Chairman, announced that 2022 will be the year of player welfare in rugby. He reaffirmed World Rugby's ongoing commitment to advancing player welfare following the six-point plan that was announced last July.

This plan made a commitment to wide-ranging engagement with the rugby family across key welfare matters. It included initiatives across the life cycle of a player – future, current and former. It recognised the differences in game shape and injury risk between the elite and community game and aimed to reduce injuries at all levels of the game.

In a statement earlier this year Sir Bill Beaumont outlined the progress made with the six-point plan:

·We have implemented welfare-focused global law trials, launched injury-preventing community game law variations and continue to evaluate reduced tackle height and the impact of substitutions on injuries.

·We have launched evidence-based contact training load guidance, which sets out the advised limits that promote welfare and performance best practice.

·We have launched our commitment to establish brain health services for former players and are partnering with leading independent experts on wider brain health education

·We have partnered on ground-breaking research using Prevent Biometrics’ instrumented mouthguard technology to understand the frequency and nature of head impacts at every level of the game – this will inform how we will make the sport safer for everyone.

·We have commissioned women’s specific research and launched the first-ever women’s welfare advisory group to steer unique research and injury prevention programmes for women ahead of what will be a massive year for women’s rugby with Rugby World Cup 2021, Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 and the Commonwealth Games Sevens.

·We are listening constantly to players, medical experts, scientists and lobby groups with the common aim of making the sport the best it can be. In the UK, World Rugby, the RFU and WRU have been actively engaged with the government’s inquiry into Concussion in Sport. It has to be said that World Rugby are sticking to their commitment and going above and beyond to progress the sport and make it as safe as possible for players.

In Sir Bill Beaumont World Rugby have someone in charge you feel really knows the game and what it means to players and fans at all levels. Quite often you have organisations, not just in sport, announce action plans and the results don’t follow. This is clearly not the case for the player welfare action plan. The work that has been done over the past 6-9 months and the initiatives that have been introduced should be congratulated.

And it doesn’t stop there. In his statement Sir Bill Beaumont added; “In 2022, we will kick on and take our support for player welfare to the next level. We will further implement our brain health action plan, supporting former players who have worries about their brain health via a global network of services run in partnership with national unions that provide access to specialist support and information, and to further understand any links between the game and neurodegenerative diseases.

"We will redouble on our investment to better identify and manage head injuries, promote individualised riskbased rehabilitation following a head injury and we will also sign innovative technology and research partnerships that will inform meaningful changes. ”

This shows that World Rugby is taking player welfare extremely seriously. They are increasing investment, time and effort into making the game for everyone safer to play. Inevitably there will be critics saying that the game is changing beyond recognition and that the highrisk element of rugby is why they play it.

"But we have to remember that for majority who play rugby it is just a hobby not a full-time profession, so steps have to be taken to avoid life changing injuries.

Even for professional players, where the risks can be argued are higher, their playing days are only a relatively small percentage of their whole working life. It’s important that their health and safety is a high priority of the sports global governing body so players can prosper in life after playing rugby.

The world as we know it is constantly evolving, rugby is certainly part of that, and World Rugby have to be commended for being at the forefront of progress in player welfare.

Club Profile

A tiger's roar can be heard far and wide

Sheffield Tigers are in their 90th year - an impressive feat for any sports club. They are proud of their long history and have exciting plans for the future.

As you come into the city of Sheffield from the west on the Hathersage Road whilst enjoying the revealing vistas of the city with seven hills, you can now notice a brown sign pointing to the left. STRUFC. That is the home of Sheffield Tigers and whilst the extreme location on the very edge of the city boundaries offers naturally challenging weather conditions there is huge momentum of activity in this part of South Yorkshire.

Club Profile

Tigers were formed in season 1932/33 and played their first year in the north of the city before moving to the Dore Moor area to a rented pitch. As the club developed, they moved nearby to what is still their current ground and commenced a process of establishment over the next five years. Tigers built a clubhouse and laid out two pitches before it but with the advent of World War Two it was not until 1946/47 that these facilities were fully realised.

Tigers expanded the facilities with more changing rooms and a further two pitches, one known forebodingly as “The Eiger” to which anyone unfortunate to play a half on it up the hill could attest to.

However there are records which document on at least two occasions that those with that handicap did actually win a half! At the start of the 1950s the name of the club was becoming well known through the country’s rugby circles and to mark the Tigers’ 21st anniversary then England captain and ex-Sheffield schoolboy Bob Stirling was Guest of Honour at the celebratory dinner.

By the mid 1970’s the club were fielding five senior sides and by 1981 were able to procure the freehold of the grounds.

When the RFU introduced the league system in 1986 Tigers were placed into Yorkshire Division two and were mid-table stalwarts there for around fifteen seasons, often having an excellent home record, due possibly to visiting teams not finding the sometime Arctic conditions to their liking!

Things really began moving on the playing side at the turn of the millennium. First up was a visit to Twickenham where Tigers defeated a highly rated Bank of England side 20-11 in the RFU Vase final. Then a year later in 2001 the Yorkshire Shield came to Dore Moor, courtesy of a 20-3 victory over Scarborough at Hull, but perhaps more significantly, Tigers gained promotion to Yorkshire Division One. Relegation followed two seasons later, but three successive league promotions saw Tigers reach North One. A return visit to Twickenham in 2005 resulted in a convincing 30-13 win over Solihull to claim the RFU Vase again.

By 2011 the Tigers arrived in National League Division 2 North, at level four of the pyramid, and after one further relegation and promotion, currently sit at eleventh in a tightly contested mid-table.

Now as Tigers approach their 90th anniversary, there is plenty to look forward to in leading up to their centenary in 2032. The club have recently appointed Jack Howieson, a former Rugby League international, as Director of Rugby and he, along with long serving first

team player / coach Jamie Broadley, are the nucleus of the drive to continuously improve playing matters. Like all clubs, Tigers are aiming to progress higher in the league system but there is a realistic approach to how this might be achieved. The short- and medium-term goals revolve around becoming a regular top six side in their division and then breaking into the top three. Promotion to step three would involve significant costs both in terms of team running costs and improved infrastructure at the Dore Moor ground.

“We are introducing an Academy style playing system so that we can develop our own player career structure right through from minis, juniors and colts rugby to 2nd team and eventually the first team squad” , explained Broadley. “We like to play in an attacking style with a mobile pack and nuggety defence to combat sides who may be bigger physically than us. Additionally we want to create an environment whereby players can create great memories and experiences and that we are perceived as the destination and senior club in Sheffield with a rewarding social set up.

Those brave pioneers who set up the club back in the 1930s would be delighted to see the club’s current facilities. There is a sizeable multi-station indoor gym area and two floodlit training pitches. As well as the burgeoning youth set up Tigers host a fully inclusive but separate club in Sheffield Vulcans. And this season has witnessed the formation of the talented and highly enthusiastic Sheffield Tigers Women, who have emerged victorious in all three of their games so far, scoring over 250 points without conceding any! Then for post-match socialising the club stocks plenty of beverages including Moonshine and Daily Bread, from the flagship range of the local Abbeydale brewery. To facilitate the recent and planned growth for the club, there are ambitious plans as Tigers Chairman, Paul Walker, explains. “We divested “The Tiger” a while back but now with so much rugby taking place at Dore Moor, we urgently need a new and replacement fourth pitch. We have acquired land at the back of the clubhouse and are now actively fundraising to meet the estimated cost of £130,000 to make it ready for use. We are well on the way to achieving this and have recently gained formal planning permission.

Club members are identifying and implementing a series of initiatives to make our plans a reality soon. Looking further ahead, we have a vision to develop the facilities in all aspects, for example hybrid pitches, more changing rooms and improved car parking and spectator amenities.

Covid has hampered us but we are now in a position to move forward and create a magnificent set up in time for our 100th season. ”