“To be honest, I’ve always been in the sand because all of this scares me,” Joe Marler said. In the TalkSport program, the English pillar with 83 selections, 32, did not hide his sadness at the consequences of concussions in rugby.
“I remember having suffered a concussion a few seasons ago. I had taken a big hit trying to tackle Billy Vunipola. I was in a daze and the only thing I remember is finding myself in a room and seeing the physio enter, ”he said.
The trainer then asked him if his wife and children were present in the stadium. “I paused and broke down. I had no memory of having children and it really scared me,” continued the Harlequins player.
“Do you want to be there for me or not?” »
Joe Marler also admitted to playing a game while suffering from a concussion last season. He says his wife then reprimanded him. “Do you want to continue to be there for the children, or not? Do you want to be there for me, or not? she asked him.
The regular XV de la Rose speaks on the subject a few days after the revelations of the former captain of the Wales team Ryan Jones. The third line said he suffered from dementia praecox, probably linked to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a neurodegenerative disease caused by repeated blows to the head. “It’s terrible for Ryan to learn this and to go through this ordeal, responded Joe Marler. It struck a chord in me.”
A hundred former professional players, including former All Blacks pillar Carl Hayman, Englishman Steve Thompson and Welshman Alix Popham, have launched legal proceedings against World Rugby to seek compensation after being diagnosed with neurological disorders. .