Document is current

Article History

Received: 26 February 2025

Accepted: 11 December 2025

First Online: 29 December 2025

Declarations

:

: All players, in accordance with the NRL and Rugby League Players Association Collective Bargaining Agreement, consented a priori to the collection of their deidentified injury data, for the purposes of research. The study was approved by The University of Newcastle’s Human Research Ethics Committee (H-2012-0344) and conducted in accordance with the standards of ethics outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki.

: SM has no declarations to disclose. DT serves as a scientific advisor for HitIQ. He previously consulted for REACT Neuro, Inc. He has a consulting practice in forensic neuropsychology, including expert testimony, involving individuals who have sustained mild TBIs (including former athletes). He received research funding from Amgen, Inc. and Football Research Inc. GLI serves or has served as a scientific advisor for NanoDX ® , Sway Operations, LLC, and Highmark, Inc. He has a clinical and consulting practice in forensic neuropsychology, including expert testimony, involving individuals who have sustained mild TBIs. He has received past research support or funding from several test publishing companies, including ImPACT Applications, Inc., CNS Vital Signs, and Psychological Assessment Resources (PAR, Inc.). He has received research funding as a principal investigator from the National Football League, and subcontract grant funding as a collaborator from the Harvard Integrated Program to Protect and Improve the Health of National Football League Players Association Members. AJG has a clinical practice in neuropsychology involving individuals who have sustained sport-related concussion (including current and former athletes). He has been a contracted concussion consultant to Rugby Australia. He is a member of the World Rugby Concussion Working Group, and a member of the Australian Football League Concussion Scientific Advisory Committee. He has received travel funding or been reimbursed by professional sporting bodies, and commercial organisations for discussing or presenting sport-related concussion research at meetings, scientific conferences, workshops, and symposiums. Previous grant funding includes the NSW Sporting Injuries Committee, the Brain Foundation (Australia), an Australian-American Fulbright Commission Postdoctoral Award, a Hunter New England Local Health District, Research, Innovation and Partnerships Health Research & Translation Centre and Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme, and the Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI), supported by Jennie Thomas, and the HMRI, supported by Anne Greaves. AJG is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grant. He acknowledges unrestricted philanthropic support from the Nick Tooth Foundation and the National Rugby League for research in former elite level rugby league players. None of the above entities were involved in the study design, analysis, interpretation, the writing of this article, or the decision to submit it for publication.