Former footballer Gary Ablett Sr is suing the AFL and two clubs, claiming he suffered damage from concussions as a result of their negligence.
Ablett has launched proceedings in the Victorian supreme court against the AFL, Geelong Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club. The 61-year-old claims he suffered concussions while training and playing throughout his AFL career, which ran between 1982 and 1997.
The Geelong icon is the highest-profile former player to reveal his health issues in relation to on-field concussion, now a major issue in world sport.
A class action led by former Melbourne star Shaun Smith, Adelaide Crows premiership player Darren Jarman and the family of the late Shane Tuck was launched last month and more than 60 former players have signed up for the legal action, seeking compensation for pain and suffering, economic loss and medical expenses relating to permanent damage from concussions and other head knocks.
Lawyers acting for Ablett said he underwent a scan last year which revealed brain damage. They claim the league and Ablett’s former clubs “knew or ought to have known of the potential long-term consequences of concussion suffered by the plaintiff”.
The court writ lodged says the AFL and two clubs owed Ablett a duty of care and should have avoided exposing him to unnecessary risk of harm, given he was more vulnerable to head strikes when playing as a key forward in 248 VFL/AFL games.
Ablett alleges the organisations breached that duty and were negligent, and he has subsequently suffered loss, injury and damage as a result of the concussions. Ablett is claiming damages, interests and costs in the supreme court proceedings.
“I started getting symptoms that alarmed me to the point where I contacted Peter Jess, whom I’m aware has been a concussion advocate for a number of past players,” Ablett told News Corp.
“I told him of my concerns and Peter helped organise an MEG scan that American Military use. It showed I have significant structural and functional brain damage.
“Obviously I was a very physical player and while I only got totally knocked out eight-10 times, I experienced being semi-concussed, such as ears ringing and out of it for a few minutes many dozens of times. But because you weren’t knocked completely out you wouldn’t even bother mentioning it.”
Ablett’s lawyer Michel Margalit said Ablett was dealing with significant health problems. “He’s not doing well. He’s had significant illness over the previous years and he’s finding that he’s struggling more and more as time goes on,” she told ABC News Breakfast.
“He has really significant medical and care needs, and there are just no funds available through the AFL Players Association or any other hardship fund to assist him with those care needs.”
Margalit would not say how much Ablett was seeking but said it was a significant claim. “It is a very substantial case and could be really at the upper range of the allowance permitted by the compensation schemes in Victoria,” she said. “This could be multiple millions of dollars.”
Last week, the AFL released a statement saying it had made more than 30 changes to concussion protocols, tribunal guidelines and on-field rules to protect players’ heads. It also released a strategic plan for sport-related concussion in Australian football.
It follows the NRL making the most significant changes to its concussion policy in nearly a decade, introducing a mandatory 11-day stand down for rugby league players after brain injuries.
The AFL has been contacted for comment.
