Doctor: Underage rugby is a safety risk

Players of rugby at underage level could be putting their safety at risk, according to a senior medic writing in the British Medical Journal.

Michael Carter, a paediatric neurosurgeon at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, told the journal that “rugby sidesteps many safeguards intended to ensure pupil well-being” and that schools, coaches, and even parents were contributing towards a “tribal, gladiatorial culture that encourages excessive aggression” and led to the under-reporting of injuries.

The issue has come under the spotlight in Ireland due to the death of Antrim schoolboy Ben Robinson while playing a match for Carrickfergus Grammar School four years ago.