I spent the morning making teas at my son’s football match where one of 
the mums expressed concern about her goalie son getting bashed on the head, he’d suffered a bad collision with the goal post last weekend.
This topic was highlighted recently by the serious head injury suffered by Chelsea goalie Petr Cech. He sustained a fractured skull, and is unlikely to return to the pitch for another year.
As a result, Headway, the brain injury association of which I am a trustee in Cambridgeshire, is urging the Football Association to provide greater protection to goalies.
The mum I spoke to believes they should wear protective headgear, just like cricket and rugby players. Is there any country in the world that has adopted this safety measure? Is it nannying to the extreme? Are they, in fact, more at risk than other players?
Headway has seized this moment to urge the FA to educate players and referees about the devastating impact of brain injury. This is the fourth serious injury suffered by a goalie in the last few months.
Chief Exec Peter McCabe said:
“We are calling on the FA to impose tougher sanctions on those who endanger their fellow professionals. We could stop this now if the FA made it clear that clattering into a goal keeper would result in a sending off for violent conduct followed by a 12 week suspension.”
Every year, more than a million people attend hospital A&E departments in the UK following a head injury, it could be any one of us, any day.
It is extremely good news to hear that Petr is making progress, but I would be amazed if , as Jose Mourinho says, he will be well enough to visit his club in the next week after sustaining such a serious injury.
I know life is all about taking risks, getting into our cars and even just walking across the road can result in the worst scenario. But I hope the FA, as well as other sports, will take time out to listen to Headway’s cautionary words, they have nothing to lose.
Personally I believe ‘headgear’ would not be worth the effort with football. It’s not as if they have many brains cells upstairs to protect.
Now Chris, that is not a very sportsmanlike attitude to have, if I may say so.
Not sure about this one E.
Football is a contact sport and occasionally, players can be injured,sometimes seriously. The Chelsea goalkeeper story has a PC, “do-gooder” feel to it.
In recent times, two players in the non-league game,died on the field of play. One was Paul Sykes,the other Matt Gatsby. They were playing for Folkestone Invicta and Hinckley United respectively.
There’s been no call for players to be screened just in case they have a condition which may cause a problem.
BTW, Chris Palmer must be an idiot.
I can’t see goalie head gearer being a goer at all. It would risk other players if they got bashed by it. It’s a contact sport and I think you have to accept risk in sport. My stint in goal at youth level didn’t do me any harm (i think)
I think that getting the FA to deal with deliberate fouls is important. Goalkeepers, when faced with 1-on-1 with a striker will sometimes just launch themselves at the striker with the intention of bringing them down to prevent them scoring.
Hi, I agree with most of the people that football is a contact sport and the risk of getting hurt is there for everybody on the ground. I think most of the times golies directly collide with the incoming players to prevent goal. Here I remember a brazilian player who was playing with a local club in India, died immediately on the ground after colliding with the golie. Well you are right that FA should educate players and referees about the devastating impact of brain injury caused by mindless tackles.
Petr Cech suffered a severe head injury and it is quite right that there should be a debate about higher levels of protection for goalies. What is not well understood is that even relatively mild injuries – possibly resulting in a short-term concussion – can be the cause of unpleasant and disabling symptoms some time later because of damage to the brain that is not recognised at the time. There does need to be a much greater awareness amongst those playing and administering contact sports that any hard blow to the head should be taken very seriously at the time and precautions taken to minimise the potential for problems in the future.
The trouble is, it has got to be tougher in the sport. Players wear glorified slippers rather than proper boots, so get broken bones. I think a goalkeeper if the most susceptable to injury.
why not ban goalkeepers all together as it obviously far too dangerous in the health and safety conscious britain? Joke.
If they get head gear then this will encourage other players to be more, not less aggressive. I played in goal at schools level up to age of 18, got a few bruises/ kicks to the head but you give out as bad as you receive!
I must say this post did catch my eye – I love football.
To start, I particuliy agree with Martin Wakeling’s sentiment that it’s quite right and proper to debate what could be done to protect goal keepers – but I believe that the Polical Teenager has got an equally good point about the context of this debate.
It seems offical, we appear to be living in a risk averse society. A society where we no one can really act until we can be absolutley sure ‘it’s safe to do so’. The demand for head gear seems reasonable, until you take in to account that FIFA is a independent body with its own laws .
Having said that, I can also understand Ellee’s concern’s, there are potentials perils attached to being a goalie – but some have rightly alluded, that it’s potentially perilous for anyone to be on the field of play, so why pick out the goalie?
The thing is, FIFA might as well be the Vatican for all we care. It’s an independent institution, with it’s own laws. The problem is Ellee, are you arguing for ‘Helmets For Goalies’? Some kind of headgear? Anything? Ok.. that might sound fair enough, but before that could happen, you’d have to change FIFA.
Law 4
A player must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another player (including any kind of jewellery).
Today it’s goalie type helmets, tomorrow it’s woolie scarves when it’s snowing. As a precaution, your prepared to interfer into the internal affairs of an independent body, and undermine it own autonomy?
Then again, who knows, FIFA could quite easily just crumble in the face of a stiff campaign to introduce some form of protective headgear that complied with it’s laws.
Dispite all that, I still have strong reservations about the amount of external interference in football these days, I don’t think it’s doing the spirit of the game any good.
Courtney, What a lot of information. I’m hoping progress will be made to help promote the safety and well being of our goalies. I know we have to take risks with sports, but they must be limited wherever possible.
I have added you to my blogroll, btw.