Beau Ryan knows how quickly a career can end, which is why he’s the latest former player to support the current crop of NRL stars who are fighting for a fairer CBA which will ensure they are protected long after their rugby league playing days are over.
Under the current CBA agreement, players have 12 months post-retirement to have any surgeries and rehabilitation paid for and are pushing hard to establish a new medical support fund.
A number of former players took to social media earlier in the week with Joe Galuvao, Eric Grothe Jr and Jason Stevens detailing the injuries they’ve had to deal with after footy.
Ryan spent eight seasons in the NRL but retired due to a neck injury when he was only 29 in a sign a career can end in an instant.
The former winger also played with guys like Taniela Tuiaki and Simon Dwyer, who had their careers abruptly ended by horrific injuries, with the latter hitting out at the NRL years ago about not being insured by the NRL.
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“I’ve spoken to a few of the guys I used to play with 10 years ago whose bodies have broken down for different reasons – one needs a knee replacement and the other needs a brain scan,” Ryan told NCA NewsWire.
“At the moment, these guys are only covered for 12 months to get surgery after they stop playing, but sometimes your body doesn’t feel the full effects until two, three, four years after you’ve stopped playing.
“I was just talking to (All Blacks legend) Dan Carter and his body feels good, but I wasn’t as lucky and had to retire early because of a neck injury.
“I was fortunate because I had a media role that I could step into, but that’s not a luxury everyone else has.”
Rugby league is littered with stories about players from 30 or 40 years ago who have hit hard times and are struggling to live normal lives.
It’s why the current crop is so desperate to lock in a fund which will protect NRL and NRLW players in the future, although that seems to be one of the sticking points which has seen the CBA deal delayed by nearly three months.
“You hear people saying the players want more money, but it’s not about that. The players aren’t being greedy,” Ryan said.
“They’re trying to protect themselves and future generations from what guys have gone through for the past 40 years.
“It’s a tough sport, and sure they get paid well, but the retirement fund and the post-footy fund needs a lot of attention because there are lots of people struggling for a number of reasons.
“There are a lot of people whose careers were cut short, and while some people have been able to stay in the game, others haven’t been so lucky.
“I think the game has a responsibility to not only protect players, but to also provide them with a safety net to help them when they do retire to get back on their feet.”
