Concussion and Taylor Twellman

Here's an eye-opening interview with Taylor Twellman of the New England Revolution by The Shin Guardian yesterday.  He talks about the impact of concussions that led to his retirement.  It's a sobering read.

Thanks to Coach Ryan Dortch for sending it along....

It sparked the following message from Director of Coaching Chance Fry to all our coaches.  Coincidentally we had a training session on concussions last night.  Chance's email reflects the club's position on concussions and playing soccer.

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Dear Coaches,

It was great to see most of you last night. Ryan Dortch sent this story to me about Taylor Twellman, one of the best strikers the U.S. has ever produced, who had his career cut short with multiple head injuries. Yesterday's presentation was an excellent reminder about where the game stands in the order of importance.

It is one thing to have a player “loopy” and quite another to have them in a wheel chair or even dead…..and as Dr. Laker explained, the gap between those scenarios can be very small. I realize that most of us grew up playing when it showed toughness to get back out there after having your bell rung. Now there is so much more research and proof that we have to trump toughness with being smart and safe.

The slide last night that hit me the most was the one that asked…”What is this game worth?”  In comparison to the health and lives of all athletes, whether they play for us or not, all games (including state, regional, national or even higher) are really meaningless.  If you always keep that in mind, you can rest assured that you will make sound decisions for your players and you will always be supported by the club.

Have a great break in December!

Chance