One of those favoured to represent England in the upcoming rugby league Ashes has hit back at suggestions he should retire for his health.
Loose forward Victor Radley won’t play in the NRL this weekend but it’s not because of his concussion issues which has seen him sidelined twice this season.
Instead, the Roosters lock will miss the game against Melbourne with a shoulder injury, something he’s spoken to the media about as well as the prior talks around his concussions.
Radley suffered his seventh concussion in four years back in June and that resulted in a lengthy lay-off as well as suggestions from medical professionals that he should consider retirement
Dr Adam Cohen, one of the leading concussion experts in Australia, claimed that figure could be much higher and called for either an extended break or even a possible retirement.
He asked: “The question has to be asked for Victor, if not now, then when? The same question Boyd Cordner and Jake Friend had to confront. How many are too many? How many per season, per year or per career? And the simple answer is that no one actually knows.
“The more you have the more you get, the easier you get them, the more you suffer and the longer it takes to recover. So in the absence of science, we should fall back on another commodity sadly in short supply when discussing concussion: common sense.”
Victor Radley silences rugby league retirement talk with positive update
Radley has now addressed the media and rubbished any suggestions he should retire whilst accepting that much of it does come from a place of care.
“The head is really good,” he said when on media duties, per Fox League.
“I’ve been working really hard on some little things that the doctors and the professors gave me. But other than that, I haven’t had one issue. Even since then, I’ve had minor knocks and not one symptom (as a result). I’ve been completely fine so I’m really positive.
“I’ve learnt some lessons over the past 12 months, especially at the start of the year with how to deal with it all.”
On those calls for him to hang up the boots, he said: “Everyone has got their opinions which is a good thing because a lot of people will come up to me and make sure that I’m all right.
“It’s all coming from a good place, but it can overwhelm me a little bit when every single person you speak with says ‘mate, make sure you look after yourself’.
“I see the best in the business with this stuff and they fill me with positivity. That’s all that matters to me – to only care about the opinions of people who know what they’re talking about. Everyone else is to just keep them happy.”
Despite those suggestions, the 27-year-old is still backing himself for more years in the game, however, he conceded that he’s not scared of a life without rugby league either.
He explained: “I haven’t thought about retiring, but I’m not scared too, either.
“I’m a carpenter and a builder by trade. I’m not thinking about retirement, but it’s not because I’m worried about it. It’s not my time now.”
Having set the record straight on his concussion issues and putting a stop to any retirement talk, Radley will look to recover his shoulder and find form ahead of this autumn’s rugby league Ashes.
