21 hours ago, chook fowler said:

At the time I thought the talk of trading was stupid. Hope that it now is well truly put to bed. He's a highly skilled and courageous player. His decision making and ball use was first class.

100%
He's a long kicking attacking weapon.
Very timely inclusion to the side.

1 hour ago, fndee said:

Paul Callery

Did Earl Spalding wear one for a bit?

There must be some more recents

I don't think so - didn't Dunstall wear one in 1990 when Spaldings knee dented Dunstall's head?

1 hour ago, Sir Why You Little said:

Running off HB Angus will be a great weapon. 

Peter Matera made it a famous back in the 90's

goal kicker off HB...

 

BANG!

I thought Matera predominantly played wing, along with Stinga. they were two of the most distinctive players of my childhood. I don't think the running HB had been invented back then. All clubs just had a back 6 consisting of 4 varying sized stopper backmen and 2 small back pockets?

Edited August 14, 20177 yr by Wrecked Owl Dees Function

36 minutes ago, Wrecked Owl Dees Function said:

I thought Matera predominantly played wing, along with Stinga. they were two of the most distinctive players of my childhood. I don't think the running HB had been invented back then. All clubs just had a back 6 consisting of 4 varying sized stopper backmen and 2 small back pockets?

Barassi had Robbie Flower running off HBF

2 hours ago, DemonAndrew said:

he looked slimmer to me, and he moved across the flanks beautifully

who was our last player to regularly wear a helmet?

Seem to remember Brad Miller wearing a helmet, but might not have been for long.

1 hour ago, Wrecked Owl Dees Function said:

I thought Matera predominantly played wing, along with Stinga. they were two of the most distinctive players of my childhood. I don't think the running HB had been invented back then. All clubs just had a back 6 consisting of 4 varying sized stopper backmen and 2 small back pockets?

Yeah predominately a wing but equally adept on a HBF. Absolute star

3 hours ago, fndee said:

Paul Callery

Did Earl Spalding wear one for a bit?

There must be some more recents

I do remember Neita causing Dunstall to wear one...that was nice memory for a 12 yo ... probably not PC to feel like that now.

3 hours ago, Danelska said:

I do remember Neita causing Dunstall to wear one...that was nice memory for a 12 yo ... probably not PC to feel like that now.

That was Earl Spalding' knee, not Neita.  

I was keen for us to hold him back another week, I, happy to admit I was 100% wrong. What a game from him given everything he's gone through, AND that he copped a knock during the game. 

I'd essentially put a pen through his year, expecting him to come good for Casey towards finals. He has more than shown why he was pick 3. 

Could not believe there were people actually contemplating trading him. 

The scriptwriters went to work on the Brayshaw story. Involved in a head-clash again at the start of the match, and for a moment looked gone for all money - shaping up for those concussion rigors. Did the helmet work?

I hope this isn't received with too much sensitivity, as it's not intended as an insult in any way whatsoever: but I've come to suspect that Gus is on the low end of some sort of genetic abnormality spectrum. There's the apparent macrocephaly, but there's also something notably odd about how he holds his hands or arms when he slows to a jog. 

We've debated whether he is especially susceptible to concussion, along with (endlessly) the actual merits of wearing a helmet in reducing them. But maybe the answer resides here somehow, that he is more susceptible due to a genetic condition, and that the character of this susceptibility is negated by a helmet?

I know concussions depend on a number of factors, but it was a pretty hefty blow (not a glancing one at least), and he definitely felt it - yet he has stayed down previously with lesser strikes. A win for the helmet?

 

 

40 minutes ago, Skuit said:

The scriptwriters went to work on the Brayshaw story. Involved in a head-clash again at the start of the match, and for a moment looked gone for all money - shaping up for those concussion rigors. Did the helmet work?

I hope this isn't received with too much sensitivity, as it's not intended as an insult in any way whatsoever: but I've come to suspect that Gus is on the low end of some sort of genetic abnormality spectrum. There's the apparent macrocephaly, but there's also something notably odd about how he holds his hands or arms when he slows to a jog. 

We've debated whether he is especially susceptible to concussion, along with (endlessly) the actual merits of wearing a helmet in reducing them. But maybe the answer resides here somehow, that he is more susceptible due to a genetic condition, and that the character of this susceptibility is negated by a helmet?

I know concussions depend on a number of factors, but it was a pretty hefty blow (not a glancing one at least), and he definitely felt it - yet he has stayed down previously with lesser strikes. A win for the helmet?

 

 

The club has been training him to lead into a contest with his body not his head which is what he was prone to do.

Didn't quite achieve that with this clash but that is the story...

5 hours ago, Luther said:

Seem to remember Brad Miller wearing a helmet, but might not have been for long.

He was probably trying not to wear one. But you know Brad ....

7 minutes ago, jnrmac said:

The club has been training him to lead into a contest with his body not his head which is what he was prone to do.

Didn't quite achieve that with this clash but that is the story...

I'd have to watch again but it didn't seem so much a case of head over the ball in a tight contest on this occasion. Another less-than-ordinary accident, but the point is he got up where he hasn't before. Correlation and causation and all that, but it's hard not to conclude that the helmet helped when he was hit flush compared to previous incidents?

Seeing him get up after the clash was awesome. I assumed the worse, IM sure JOnes was thinking do I stop and check. The MFC curse is over. A flag is on its way with Gus to kick the winning goal.

1 hour ago, jnrmac said:

The club has been training him to lead into a contest with his body not his head which is what he was prone to do.

Didn't quite achieve that with this clash but that is the story...

They have also been working on strengthening his neck muscles to minimise the whiplash effect. May have helped in this clash, not sure though

55 minutes ago, Moonshadow said:

They have also been working on strengthening his neck muscles to minimise the whiplash effect. May have helped in this clash, not sure though

Just upon watching the replay, his head whips back upon initial impact, but then it looks like his body holds up and doesn't fling back. Like there was a moment of awareness or remembering of something that he may have been taught to do upon impact - I'm just glad he wasn't playing last week and the opponent was Mumford, as his head still does look like it flings back quite strongly and a bigger hit may have done some damage.

Edited August 14, 20177 yr by Wrecked Owl Dees Function

On 8/13/2017 at 5:26 PM, beelzebub said:

I hadn't

Said to son before the game...as he asks about who to put in his fantasy sides etc....He asked ..Viney?  I said  nah...GUS !!  Just watch him straighten up the play.. He played further back than I thought he would today but a good way to bring him back into the fray.

Had to be in the votes I reckon !!

i won't again,If he gets the luck he deserves we can look forward to watching his long and famous career.

Helmets do nothing physically to prevent concussion, or more accurately described, brain injury. It's the same even for hard shell helmets, eg bike helmets. Either will only help to prevent superficial scalp wounds, bone (skull) bruising, and potentially skull fractures (depression fractures) due to a lateral spread of the impact force. Concussion occurs when the brain 'sloshes' inside the skull due to acceleration/deceleration forces secondary to impact and high speed whipping. There is however an unknown psychological contribution to helmets. Increased awareness of the wearer for their own head, and arguably even of the player coming at the helmet wearer. The converse argument would be that the wearer makes themselves a target. 

3 hours ago, Webber said:

Helmets do nothing physically to prevent concussion, or more accurately described, brain injury. It's the same even for hard shell helmets, eg bike helmets. Either will only help to prevent superficial scalp wounds, bone (skull) bruising, and potentially skull fractures (depression fractures) due to a lateral spread of the impact force. Concussion occurs when the brain 'sloshes' inside the skull due to acceleration/deceleration forces secondary to impact and high speed whipping. There is however an unknown psychological contribution to helmets. Increased awareness of the wearer for their own head, and arguably even of the player coming at the helmet wearer. The converse argument would be that the wearer makes themselves a target. 

@Webber is there any evidence that the brain has less free play up and down inside the skull because it's anchored by the spinal cord, compared with horizontal free play?

I had a bicycle accident where I flew at speed across the bonnet of a right hand turning car car and landed flush on top of my head/helmet on the road.  The helmet was destroyed and I believe it saved my life - otherwise my skull would have been crushed.  While I was pretty dazed until the ambulance came, I didn't have any lasting concussion symptoms.  Lucky no spinal injury too!!!  I'm a big fan of bicycle helmets.

Edited August 15, 20177 yr by Fifty-5

16 hours ago, Moonshadow said:

They have also been working on strengthening his neck muscles to minimise the whiplash effect. May have helped in this clash, not sure though

Interesting.

How does one strengthen neck muscles exactly?  

3 hours ago, Webber said:

Helmets do nothing physically to prevent concussion, or more accurately described, brain injury. It's the same even for hard shell helmets, eg bike helmets. Either will only help to prevent superficial scalp wounds, bone (skull) bruising, and potentially skull fractures (depression fractures) due to a lateral spread of the impact force. Concussion occurs when the brain 'sloshes' inside the skull due to acceleration/deceleration forces secondary to impact and high speed whipping. There is however an unknown psychological contribution to helmets. Increased awareness of the wearer for their own head, and arguably even of the player coming at the helmet wearer. The converse argument would be that the wearer makes themselves a target. 

agree with all that webber

....however... there is some evidence coming out that some helmet material can reduce (slightly) the rate of acceleration. there was research published here on demonland about that. i've forgotten the company/brand for the moment. a small improvement in some cases could make a difference

17 hours ago, jnrmac said:

The club has been training him to lead into a contest with his body not his head which is what he was prone to do.

Didn't quite achieve that with this clash but that is the story...

All kids wear helmets gives them a false sense that the helmet blocks the pain, so they lead with their heads, helmets teach people to not worry about protecting their heads, and I think it is not being taught in  junior footy to protect their heads because coaches think the helmet will save all injuries.

 

15 hours ago, Wrecked Owl Dees Function said:

Just upon watching the replay, his head whips back upon initial impact, but then it looks like his body holds up and doesn't fling back. Like there was a moment of awareness or remembering of something that he may have been taught to do upon impact - I'm just glad he wasn't playing last week and the opponent was Mumford, as his head still does look like it flings back quite strongly and a bigger hit may have done some damage.

He got hit in the forehead, the saints player was hit side on, if Gus was hit side on then he would of been in trouble.

39 minutes ago, daisycutter said:

agree with all that webber

....however... there is some evidence coming out that some helmet material can reduce (slightly) the rate of acceleration. there was research published here on demonland about that. i've forgotten the company/brand for the moment. a small improvement in some cases could make a difference

Hit the nail on the head. It is the rate of acceleration (or deceleration) that causes the damage with any collision. Anything that slows the rate of deceleration, especially when talking the fractions of a second in a collision, can have a huge effect on the G-force experienced. Bike helmets do this quite effectively (see: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/sep/22/bicycle-helmets-reduce-risk-of-serious-head-injury-by-nearly-70-study-finds, although I acknowledge the study focused on serious brain injury and not necessarily just concussions, which may still happen). But bringing it back to football, absorbing the impact with your body rather than the head will do more to reduce the G-forces on the brain than an inch-or-so of high density foam.

This same principle has been applied very successfully to car design over the last 20-30 years: those crumple zones reduce the G-force experienced by the occupants inside by up to 80% compared to older vehicles and have been instrumental in reducing the road toll over the past generation. 

1 hour ago, JTR said:

Interesting.

How does one strengthen neck muscles exactly?  

Neck exercises.

28 minutes ago, Redleg said:

Neck exercises.

I wasn't being smart.

Just wondering how it'd be done and what exercises would specifically target muscles in neck.

It's obviously not something like arms, legs or core which you can train more directly...