Sports concussions

Maxence Garcia Ms. Kelly English 120 MW: 1110-1225 24 January When to Use Your Head In the New York Times, Option for Debate there was an Article that caught my eye, it was called “ How Risky is Heading in Soccer.” The article debates on whether young soccer players should be allowed to head the ball at such a young age. In soccer there are many injuries happen, however, one that hasnt been talk about a lot is head injuries and concussions. A football player takes hit after hit daily so it is easy to see how they can get brain damage, for soccer players it is very different. According to How Risky is Heading in Soccer, Stefan Fatsis a writer and debater of this article believes that all youth soccer leagues should ban heading of soccer balls altogether. His reasons are that most kids arent coordinated enough to head the ball or their ignorance on how to head a ball can cause injuries to them or a collision with another player. He also states that a player can learn good ball control if they used chest and feet more and frequently. Past soccer players have come out to complain having some brain damage issues which is not common or frequent in other sports such as football.
Sarah K. Fields another debater in the article, debates that it isnt so much heading the ball but collisions while trying to head the ball. 10% of all injuries for both boys and girls in the league she coaches in have been only to headers. Young males were 33% concussed from heading the ball and the other 77% was due to a collision between the two players. She states that soccer is supposed to be a safer sport then baseball, and football thus efforts ought to be taken to ensure safety during heading. Similarly, better officiating should be embraced when two players go up for a header. Debater Christopher Nowinski, states that no regardless of circumstances, in youth soccer there will always be a chance of child getting a concussion whether while heading the ball or colliding with another for the ball. He also states that since the child’s brain is still developing, heading the ball can cause a lot of head trauma.
Headers should never be taken out of the game since they have been part of the game all along, intuitively, there have been more and more concussion’s and head trauma injuries. In the article “ How Risky is Heading in Soccer ” writers debated whether or not headers should be taken out of youth soccer. Writers shared with us facts about headers, and how most concussion injuries are from collisions between two players. Debater Christopher Nowinski, from the article “ How Risky is Heading in Soccer” says “ At least 30 percent of concussions are caused by the act of heading the ball, usually from colliding with other players.” Concussions can also cause a considerable impact of head trauma for a child of a young age and can cause permanent damage. I believe that at the youngest age of playing heading shouldnt be allowed, due to the fact that a kids’ brain is still developing so it can cause serious injury. Later in the game headers should be coached and trained on how to head balls. When I say coached I mean take the time to carefully explain to a player how to head the ball correctly so that when they do they would not hurt themselves, or even get a concussion. Debater Sarah K. Fields states that “ it is important to have a discussion about how to make the sport safer for all kids. We can do that in part with better coaching and conditioning, as well as more careful officiating.” Another huge factor of concussions were mid-air collisions between two players. Coaches need to teach players how to give space and not over crowd someone. For instance if a player rises high for a header it would be better if they were trained to go up straight and aim for the ball and not the opponent or another player. There needs to be more trainers or coaches looking out for concussions. In most cases a player can get a concussion and continue playing and risk a horrific injury Chris Nowinski says “ Most soccer players do not report their concussion symptoms and continue to play, exposing them to significant short- and long-term consequences like post-concussion syndrome and second-impact syndrome.”
Similarly, the article “ How Risky is Heading in Soccer,” debaters stress on the safety of the child playing. Stefan Fatis another debater goes on to acknowledge the fact that even retired professional players have yet to talk about serious effects of concussions and head injuries. I know that there is padded helmets a player can wear so that they don’t injure themselves. One such player is Petr Čech, a goalie who has worn a padded helmet since he had a major concussions after a previous injury. Unlike others he did not collide with another player but instead hit the goal post. In retrospect, injuries are bound to happen but it is on the parents and child to weigh the risk for the reward.
Work Cited
Fatsis, Stefan. ” How Risky Is Heading in Soccer?” The Opinion Pages Room for Debate. New York Times, 26 June 2014. Web. 24 Jan. 2015. .
Feilds, Sarah K. ” How Risky Is Heading in Soccer?” The Opinion Pages Room for Debate. New York Times, 26 June 2014. Web. 24 Jan. 2015. .
Lipton, Michael. ” How Risky Is Heading in Soccer?” The Opinion Pages Room for Debate. New York Times, 26 Jan. 2014. Web. 24 Jan. 2015. .
Nowinski, Christopher. ” How Risky Is Heading in Soccer?” The Opinion Pages Room for Debate. New York Times, 26 June 2014. Web. 24 Jan. 2015. .