Head injury plea to footballers

Experts say the ball can travel at considerable force

Footballers have been advised to register head injuries following concern that they could be leading to problems in later life.

The call came from the Scottish Professional Footballers' Association as the families of two former stars prepared to take their cases for alleged damage caused by heading the ball to court.

The families of former Celtic players Billy McPhail and Jock Weir have blamed their conditions on contact with the ball during their careers.

Billy McPhail: Highlighting condition

With research into possible footballing head injuries continuing, Fraser Wishart, of the SPFA, said players should be aware of the possible adverse effects of injury.

He said: "Footballers are probably very unaware of the damage that head injuries can do to their brain or to themselves.

"We have never really thought about head injuries as being industrial injuries.

"If there is evidence that points to that then we would certainly encourage players, past and present, to register serious head injuries."

Press for compensation

Alzheimer's Disease sufferer Mr McPhail, who scored a famous hat trick for Celtic against Rangers in 1957, failed in an attempt to win damages at an industrial injuries tribunal two years ago.

His family, and relatives of Mr Weir, who shot to fame in the late 40s but who now suffers from dementia, told BBC Scotland's Frontline programme they would press for compensation.

Evidence from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Glasgow University revealed that the peak force a player's head would need to absorb from an old-style football travelling at speed would be half a ton.

While this could be reduced to half that value with a new ball, Dr Ron Thomson said the force was still considerable.

Fraser Wishart: Players should register injuries

He said: "To put this into context if we think about being hit by a boxer, the best estimates we have of the force, the peak force that a boxer could impart when he hits something, is something between 1,000 and 2,000 newtons.

"So both of these ball impacts are worse than being hit by a good amateur boxer. If that is repeated frequently over a reasonable playing career then I would expect damage to result."

However, Professor Graham Teasdale, of the Institute of Neurological Sciences at Glasgow University, said that while players should be aware of the dangers of head injury, he did not wish to overstate the risks associated with normal heading of the ball.

'Not over-frightening'

He said: "Head contact sports have to be taken seriously. And I think an awareness and caution about head injuries that make them unconscious is a very, very good thing.

"The distinction I'm making is not just academic, but it is a distinction between heading the ball that doesn't make you unconscious, which I don't think there's any evidence is likely to lead to severe, long-lasting generalised brain damage.

"And I wouldn't want to have people over-frightened about that."

Erik Matser, Neuropsychologist at St Anna Hospital in Eindhoven, Holland, said football officials should consider introducing a 15-minute rule for players who have suffered head injuries, allowing them time to recover.

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 Click here to watch the Frontline Scotland programme, broadcast at 2220BST, 2 May, on BBC1