Former team-mates give support to Broadhurst
James Broadhurst has joined what has become a common club for Taranaki players in the last decade.
The club, for players who have been forced out of rugby early because of concussion, includes the likes of Kane Barrett, Shane Cleaver, Craig Clarke, Riki Hoeata, Berny Hall and David Ormrod.
For Broadhurst, the decision to make public his retirement from rugby at the age of 29 was done yesterday, although former teammates say they have known for some time that the one-test All Black would not return to the field.
Broadhurst’s former provincial captain Clarke did not see Taranaki as standing out for having more players facing the problem.
Clarke said he had spoken to Broadhurst recently about his ongoing problems and was pleased he was seeking help from the New Zealand Players’ Association.
‘‘They seem to have pushed guys to seek advice from other players. He gave me a call and wanted to know how the process went for me.’’
Now dairy farming in South Taranaki, Clarke said players often came to the realisation that there were plenty of years left in their lives when it paid to be healthy more than anything else.
‘‘Someone of his calibre, instead of losing out on something, he can find so much in a positive change. There is so much opportunity out there for a guy like Broady and I think he knows that.’’
Clarke’s thoughts were echoed by Cleaver who also played alongside Broadhurst and also had his career ended early because of bad concussion side-effects.
Cleaver has admitted he tried to hide the fact he was suffering from problems and regretted that now. However, he said he did realise eventually there was a lot more to life away from full-time rugby.
He credits Taranaki team doctor Steve Smith for being one of the first in the country to get strict on concussion protocols that would have a long-term benefit to players. ’’He has been the most pro-active around it and he was outstanding to deal with it.
‘‘Maybe that’s why we’ve had so many guys go down with it because he made us aware of what was going on where as other unions took a bit longer to get tougher.’’