{"id":104422,"date":"2025-01-27T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-26T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballinatimes\/?p=104422"},"modified":"2025-01-22T20:55:13","modified_gmt":"2025-01-22T09:55:13","slug":"mandatory-medical-certificate-for-footy-players-over-40","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballinatimes\/news\/mandatory-medical-certificate-for-footy-players-over-40\/","title":{"rendered":"Mandatory medical certificate for footy players over 40"},"content":{"rendered":"

NORTHERN Rivers Region Rugby League players aged 40 years or older will need to pass a compulsory medical check to play in this year’s competition.<\/p>\n

It is part of a state-wide initiative by NSW Rugby League with players to complete a Certificate of Fitness before they take the field.<\/p>\n

The new rule applies to anyone looking to play, train or take part in a carnival sanctioned by the governing body.<\/p>\n

The medical check has been brought in for player safety and mainly affects local players in the reserve grade competition.<\/p>\n

Only a handful of players in the NRRRL first grade competition are over 40, while others are nearing the age bracket.<\/p>\n

NRRRL chairman Max Beecher said it is a good move surrounding player safety.<\/p>\n

“At any level you have to be reasonably fit to play, so it’s definitely a good thing,” Beecher said.<\/p>\n

“I think they have already been doing it in Queensland for a few years now and this will get everyone on the same page.”<\/p>\n

Players will have to provide the certificate, completed by a GP, before registering with their club.<\/p>\n

The purpose of the policy is to detect any pre-existing illness or physical abnormality that players might not necessarily be aware of.<\/p>\n

The medical information remains confidential between player and doctor and cannot be accessed by NSW Rugby League or the NRRRL.<\/p>\n

NSW Rugby League chief medical officer Dr Nathan Gibbs said he hoped the medical clearance would encourage older players to stay in the sport.<\/p>\n

“Continuing to play team contact sport like rugby league as an older player over 40 is definitely encouraged for all the mental and physical benefits gained from being involved in a team sport and the conditioning required to be able to play the game,” he said.<\/p>\n

“However, increasing age also has an increased risk of contact injury and an increased risk of medical problems related to the actual physical conditioning required to play the game.<\/p>\n

“As such it is important to visit your GP and get a clearance medically and physically to say that you are fit to play despite your older age.”<\/p>\n

The medical form can be accessed at www.nswrl.com.au<\/a> with the first round of the NRRRL season set down for the weekend of April 5-6.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NORTHERN Rivers Region Rugby League players aged 40 years or older will need to pass a compulsory medical check to play in this year’s competition. It is part of a state-wide initiative by NSW Rugby League with players to complete a Certificate of Fitness before they take the field. The new rule applies to anyone […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":234,"featured_media":104423,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-104422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMandatory medical certificate for footy players over 40 - Ballina Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Players over 40 in Northern Rivers Rugby League must pass a Rugby League medical check for safety before playing this season.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballinatimes\/news\/mandatory-medical-certificate-for-footy-players-over-40\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mandatory medical certificate for footy players over 40 - 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