Wayne Carey defends AFL over its tragic concussion history
Former AFL star Wayne Carey has launched an underhand swipe at ex-AFL footballers who lined up to sue the league over brain injuries they say were caused by negligence.
In conversation with Channel 9 journalist Ayrton Woolley about his new podcast titled The Truth Hurts, Carey took potshots from the cheap seats while supporting the AFL.
“What I do say, and this is in defense of the AFL – and people will be surprised, in defense of the AFL and also the players’ union – I think they acted in accordance with the science,” he said.
Wayne Carey was cut from radio and television after last year’s ‘white powder scandal’
Gary Ablett Snr is suing the AFL over claims repeated blows to the head throughout his career have caused him lifelong problems
Wayne Carey celebrates after winning the 1996 AFL Grand Final game between the North Melbourne Kangaroos and the Sydney Swans
Footy legend Gary Ablett Senior is latest to take legal action against the AFL amid claims his ‘significant’ brain injury has left him with ‘headaches and cranial pressure’ since 2010, with symptoms progressing to migraines, insomnia, blurred vision, memory loss , fatigue and severe depression.
A who’s who of former footy players has taken legal action against the AFL over similar complaints, with swag of clubs and club doctors appearing in Supreme Court subpoenas.
Carey, who was a two-time North Melbourne premiership captain and a seven-time All Australian, said while the AFL may have a case to answer, he did not believe players were being deliberately endangered by the league, clubs or doctors.
“As the science has improved and we’ve learned more and more about what concussion does to players after their careers and how it affects their afterlife, I think they’ve moved in line with that,” he said.
Carey joked that he considered taking a concussion test himself in an attempt to explain away his life of controversy.
Carey’s media career came to an abrupt end last September after he dropped a bag of white powder on a gaming table at Perth’s Crown Casino.
‘I’d like to, maybe I’ll do a concussion test myself. Maybe – with a wink – I can blame some behavior on it,’ he joked.
Although Carey said he believed Ablett’s claims, he insisted that the AFL and club doctors had acted accordingly at the time.
“We had one of the very best. We had Harry Unglik. Harry Unglik wouldn’t send you back on the field if… there was science at the time to suggest you couldn’t go back on the field,” he said.
“Those guys would never send you back. Never.’
Shane Tuck (left) in 2010 during his AFL prime. He would commit suicide after struggling with brain injuries sustained during his career
The wife of AFL star Shane Tuck (left) Katherine (right) believes the coroner does not acknowledge the AFL’s past sins
Carey said he would have played after scoring a big hit even if he knew what doctors now know about concussions.
“If I thought when I got hit really hard in a preliminary final against Brisbane in ’96 or ’99 and felt a little dizzy after the game, then again the science wasn’t there to suggest I should miss a week , would I go out again and now had after effects?
“Again, this is me personally…would I get back on the ground to play in that grand final? I absolutely would,” he said.
Carey said players should take responsibility for their own actions.
“There are players who raise their hands… Mentally this is not something physical like a broken bone so to speak. Because that is very easy to know. When that’s healed, OK, bang, you’re out again. But the mental health side is certainly a huge problem,” he said.
This week, the widow of former AFL player Shane Tuck withdrew from a coronary inquest into his death, citing concerns about the scope of the investigation.
Shane Tuck died by suicide in 2020, at the age of 38.
An autopsy revealed that the former Richmond midfielder suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a fatal brain disease linked to repeated blows to the head.
Ms Tuck wanted the inquest to focus more on the adequacy of headbutt and concussion policies when her husband played in the AFL, rather than the current scope of current and future guidelines regarding concussion in both boxing as the AFL.
Liam Picken in May 2017 for the Western Bulldogs. He claims his career was cut short by a brain injury
Liam Picken was knocked out against the Hawks at Mars Stadium on March 3, 2018 in Ballarat. He claims he was immediately put back to work
Liam Picken is also one of the former players to sue the AFL, his former club and his doctors for failing to protect his health during his 198-game career.
Picken, now aged 36, was a premiership winning player for the Western Bulldogs in 2016 and played for the club from 2009 to 2017.
In documents filed with Victoria’s Supreme Court on Wednesday, Picken claimed the AFL, Bulldogs and his doctors Gary Zimmerman and Jacob Landsberger all failed in their duty of care to protect him from brain injury.
Picken has outlined a series of on-pitch incidents he claims were mishandled by the Bulldogs dating back to 2011.
Despite tests indicating he had performed below the normal range for human brains, Picken claims he was immediately returned to work.
Picken claims he was not referred to sports-related concussion experts or referred for an MRI for further investigation.
The former player highlighted a particularly sickening incident during a collision with Freemantle in 2017.
The premiership hero suffered a concussion when Tommy Sheridan landed on his head in the second quarter and was left alone on Subiaco’s turf as play continued around him.
Picken claims the collision left him with a “clear diagnosis of brain injury or concussion.”
Despite the severity of the blow, Picken claims he was not given a SCAT 3 test, which is used to assess concussion in athletes.
“The (AFL) knew or should have known that the plaintiff suffered a brain injury or concussion in the April 8, 2017 incident,” the subpoena said.
Picken went on to claim that the Bulldogs knew it too.
Five days after that incident, Picken claims he underwent a Digital Cognitive Assessment, in which he recommended waiting for symptoms to subside before taking another post-injury test.
Those test results were never provided to him and he immediately returned to full training.