One-Eyed Richmond Forum
Football => Richmond Rant => Topic started by: one-eyed on June 26, 2010, 01:23:24 PM
-
Just posting this here for those that may have missed it.
Polly and Thorp clashed heads in a marking contest early on in the Coburg vs Werribee game and knocked each other out. They were out cold before they hit the ground. Both are okay and Polly came to shortly afterwards on the ground and removed his mouthguard and was talking to the trainers. Polly went off on a stretcher with the precautionary neckbrace but Phil Clearly on the boundary said Polly is okay thankfully.
-
Double whammy for Polak.
Thorpe got him with a left cross to the chin which rocked his head back a split second before the head clash.
-
Polly off for tests just to be sure but he's okay they are saying.
-
Cleary was able to have a talk with Polly. Polly doesn;t remember what happened but he's okay and able to smile about it.
-
Him coming off on a stretcher was the 2nd story on Channel 9 news tonight.
Prognosis was he came off for precaution is resting at home tonight and will be right to play next week. :thumbsup
-
Him coming off on a stretcher was the 2nd story on Channel 9 news tonight.
Prognosis was he came off for precaution is resting at home tonight and will be right to play next week. :thumbsup
:)
ABC news said the same thing.
-
They may not be the most glamorous things, but wear a helmet, Polly
Glad he's okay
-
Agree FNM he wore a helmet for a while, but then stopped. Should do so again.
-
Agree FNM he wore a helmet for a while, but then stopped. Should do so again.
I still think Polak can play at AFL level.
At the end of the day, he's lucky to be alive and has come back and made an AFL return and as recent as the last month has had back to back BOGs at VFL level. Be a great story for Polak to be a AFL regular again and be apart of an AFL premiership with us. But at the end of the day I dont think there would be any shame in Polak hanging up the boots, life is more important than football.
Glad he's OK. Didn't enjoy watching it at all.
-
Polak concussed in head clash
BRENT DIAMOND
June 27, 2010
RICHMOND utility Graham Polak is likely to go back to wearing a helmet after being concussed in a sickening head clash in the opening minute of the Coburg Tigers' VFL clash with Werribee at Chirnside Park yesterday.
It is just two years since Polak received serious head injuries after being struck by a tram.
The Tigers' hierarchy feared the worst yesterday after Polak collided with former Hawthorn youngster Mitch Thorp in a marking contest. Polak was carried off on a stretcher and neither player took any further part in the match.
Polak, 26, returned to the bench in the second quarter before going home.
When he made his long-awaited return to the AFL late last season, he wore protective headgear. But he hasn't worn a helmet for the majority of this season.
Coburg coach David Newett said Polak would have scans this week and was uncertain whether he would return to the field next week.
"I don't know if that's [a helmet] going to help him at all … it was just what the doctor recommended to him when he returned to footy," Newett said. "There was a great deal of concern for Graham knowing his history. Any player that suffers concussion, it's always a worrying concern.
"It's the same with any concussion. The doctors will have to monitor him and assess him and judge him, and take in [his history].
''I'm sure Graham will want to play next week, but it will probably come down to a decision midweek.''
The former Docker was elevated from the rookie list at the start of the season after being re-selected by the Tigers as a mature-age rookie.
Newett is confident Polak still has a future at Punt Road and will resume where he left off this season as a dominant ruckman and forward for Coburg. He has played just three AFL matches this year.
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/polak-concussed-in-head-clash-20100626-zaz8.html
-
Not on the net but this is in today's Herald-Sun ......
Agony for Polak
By HOWARD LEIGH
Sunday Herald-Sun
27 JUN 2010, Page 72
COBURG coach and Richmond development coach David Newett has denied the career of defender Graham Polak is in jeopardy after he was knocked unconscious in a collision in yesterday's VFL match against the Werribee Tigers.
Polak, 26, was stretchered from the field in a neck brace after a head clash with Werribee and former Hawthorn player Mitch Thorp 46 seconds into the game.
He was about to mark when Thorp tried to spoil. They clashed heads and crashed to the ground face first.
Polak received treatment for concussion and was examined by a club doctor.
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick went to the Coburg rooms to check on Polak's condition.
"It was a frightening situation for both of them but the good thing is that Polak is OK,'' Hardwick said.
Polak left the ground before halftime.
Thorp was treated for concussion, a bleeding mouth, bruised lip and didn't return to the field.
Polak, who has played two AFL games with Richmond this season, was not wearing a protective head guard. He has dispensed with the guard he wore in 2009 after he returned to VFL and AFL football after suffering a brain injury when struck by a tram.
Werribee weathered a last quarter stuff by Coburg to win by seven points.
-
Polak recovers from head clash
richmondfc.com.au
3:34 PM Sun 27 June, 2010
Graham Polak has recovered well from a head clash suffered during the first quarter of yesterday’s VFL match between Coburg and Werribee at Chirnside Park.
Polak was carried from the field on a stretcher after colliding with Werribee’s Mitch Thorp.
He recovered quickly and rejoined team-mates on the interchange bench during the second quarter, before leaving the ground and returning home to rest.
Polak was cleared of any damage this morning when assessed by club doctor Greg Hickey.
He will be monitored closely in the coming days, before a decision is made about his chances of playing this weekend.
http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6301/newsid/96992/default.aspx
-
Ch 9 news tonight just said Polak is weighing up his football future.
-
Ch 9 news tonight just said Polak is weighing up his football future.
Almost the perfect solution, let him go out on his own terms.
AND give him a farewell game.
:clapping
-
Maybe time for the Club and him to sit down about his future post-2010. No point risking his health and life outside of footy for just the next two months if we are going to cut him at the end of year anyway. If Polly does play out of the season then he will have to wear a helmet. Footy is a 360 degree collision game and accidental clashes to the head such as yesterday can happen.
-
Be better for him and the club if they offered him an off-field role really where he could get some useful experience and build an after-footy career.
-
Be better for him and the club if they offered him an off-field role really where he could get some useful experience and build an after-footy career.
Best case scenario. Give him a farewell game in either Round 15 against his old club Freo at the Dome or Round 16 against the Sh1tboners at our real home ground in the G. Best case scenario for both club and player and both parties can still live amicably and cordially. Plus if we play North we can have a farewell game and a win against them for payback for Martyn in 2002 and McCartney in 2003.
Then give him an off field role to keep him in the game. :thumbsup
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business and like many before him Polly should be shown the exit door ASAP, so someone else can be tried.
Even in the games he played he showed nothing Polly so thanks for the good times champ but adhious muchachos
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business and like many before him Polly should be shown the exit door ASAP, so someone else can be tried.
Even in the games he played he showed nothing Polly so thanks for the good times champ but adhious muchachos
I am really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really sorry to say this but...
I agree with Daniel.
:chuck
-
he should retire this week, i dont think its necessary to give him a farewell match.
-
Geez pretty quick finish him up straight away...
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business and like many before him Polly should be shown the exit door ASAP, so someone else can be tried.
Even in the games he played he showed nothing Polly so thanks for the good times champ but adhious muchachos
I agree. What a waste of time a farewell game would be. It's a farce. It makes me sick that we get sucked in to these stupid farewell games.
Troy Simmonds last match, what the hell for? What purpose did it serve?
I could possibly understand if the player were a 200+ game legend of just Richmond but to let a traded player get a send off is silly.
I say let him walk the boundary in a nice suit.
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business and like many before him Polly should be shown the exit door ASAP, so someone else can be tried.
Even in the games he played he showed nothing Polly so thanks for the good times champ but adhious muchachos
I am really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really sorry to say this but...
I agree with Daniel.
:chuck
I agree with '65 (mainly the really's)
-
Polak feeling fine and on track for Richmond recall after head clash
SAMANTHA LANE
June 28, 2010
GRAHAM Polak could resume playing football as soon as this weekend following his encouraging recovery from a heavy head clash in a VFL match.
Two years ago he was hit by a tram that left him with severe head injuries and resumed playing wearing a helmet.
Polak allayed the fears of his friends and family by reporting he felt in good health yesterday - and that he was just as determined to break back into Richmond's senior side - following his sickening collision with former Hawthorn player Mitch Thorp on Saturday afternoon when playing for Coburg.
The Tigers' doctor, Greg Hickey, also provided an encouraging medical prognosis after assessing the 26-year-old footballer again.
Despite Polak's recent history, it is expected he will only require standard monitoring this week, in keeping with the requirements for any footballer who has been concussed.
''He has pulled up really well and I'm sure he'll be talking to the doctors and putting his hand up for selection. But we'll leave that up to the doctors,'' the player's manager, Paul Connors, said yesterday.
Polak did not go to hospital after his heavy knock, in which both he and Werribee player Thorp lost consciousness, at Chirnside Park. After leaving the field on a stretcher, Polak later appeared on the interchange bench but soon after went home.
''He was really good last night and he's no different today. He's in good shape,'' Richmond's football manager Ross Monaghan said last night.
''Greg is the one who assessed him this morning and he's quite happy with where he's up to. As we could tell he was back to normal. We just expect him to have a fairly normal week really, but Greg will assess him and if he thinks he needs to see his specialist again he'd certainly be off to do that. But at this stage we don't think that's likely.''
As for whether Polak was a chance to play this week in Richmond's match against Sydney, Monaghan said: ''That's a medical decision, but he certainly hasn't been discounted from playing this week. That's something that will be decided during the course of the week.''
After playing three senior matches earlier this season - in rounds seven, eight and 10 - Polak, with a contract that expires at the end of this season, has been unable to find his way back into the Richmond team.
While he was named as an emergency for the Tigers' last game, against Brisbane Lions, following some strong form in the VFL, youngsters Ben Astbury and Ben Griffiths have latterly been given opportunities, playing similar roles in the team as those of the 194-centimetre key forward-ruckman.
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/polak-stuff-for-richmond-recall-after-head-clash-20100627-zbxe.html
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business
What is he on as a rookie? Give him an offer on minimum AFL wage, he can enrol in a uni/TAFE course and even if he does an ordinary job its no big loss. Easy to feel otherwise in the corporate AFL world, but footy clubs should still be a family and if someone has had a bad turn of luck I think I'd be proud of the RFC if they helped him secure his long-term future.
-
KO'd Polak urged to rethink
Courtney Walsh
The Australian
June 28, 2010
A FORMER teammate of Graham Polak has urged him to consider his future after the Tiger was knocked unconscious at VFL level on Saturday.
The collision came almost two years after he nearly lost his life when hit by a tram.
Polak will have scans this week to assess the extent of damage after he collapsed following a head hit on Saturday when playing with Richmond's VFL-affiliate Coburg at Chirnside Park. The 26-year-old was running to a marking contest when he clashed heads with former Hawk Mitch Thorpe, now playing with Werribee.
Former teammate Nathan Brown was uncomfortable after watching footage that showed Polak was unconscious as he fell face-first to the ground, where he was immediately attended to by concerned medical staff.
He was then carried from the ground on a stretcher, with the impact so severe that neither player was able to return to the match. Polak spent some time on the bench before being sent home.
In a statement, the Tigers said Polak was cleared of any damage when assessed by club doctor Greg Hickey yesterday.
Richmond will continue to monitor his condition through the week before deciding whether he will play for Coburg next weekend.
Brown said Polak, who suffered a life-threatening brain injury when struck by a tram while crossing a road in June, 2008, should consider whether it was worth putting his health in jeopardy by continuing to play football.
"There would have to be (great concerns)," Brown said. "He is just a terrific guy, but you have to think about his family, you have to think about his girlfriend, who he has married. You don't want it to interfere with the rest of his life."
Notable in the incident was that Polak was not wearing a helmet, something he did when returning to the game last year at VFL reserve level during his recovery.
Brown, who retired at the end of last season, yesterday implored Polak to don the helmet should he continue to play.
"He probably should have played with the helmet," Brown told The Footy Show.
Following Saturday's game, Coburg coach David Newett told The Sunday Age that he was not certain whether a helmet would make a difference.
"I don't know if that's going to help him at all. It was just what the doctor recommended to him when he returned to footy," Newett said.
"There was a great deal of concern for Graham knowing his history."
Polak, who struggled with his game awareness and peripheral vision in the early stages of his comeback at VFL reserves level last year, improved to the point where he returned at AFL level with Richmond in round 21.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/kod-polak-urged-to-rethink/story-e6frg7mf-1225884943395
-
"He is just a terrific guy, but you have to think about his family, you have to think about his girlfriend, who he has married.
That'd be his wife, Browny. ;)
-
Glad he's ok but should be delisted at year's end.
-
"He is just a terrific guy, but you have to think about his family, you have to think about his girlfriend, who he has married.
That'd be his wife, Browny. ;)
Good to see that Browny isn't up on current events ;D
They aint married yet - later this year is the wedding :shh
:rollin :rollin
-
"He is just a terrific guy, but you have to think about his family, you have to think about his girlfriend, who he has married.
That'd be his wife, Browny. ;)
Good to see that Browny isn't up on current events ;D
They aint married yet - later this year is the wedding :shh
:rollin :rollin
Betcha it aint Browneys mistake. I'd put money on a misquote from the press.
-
off field role. na dont agree. RFC is a business
What is he on as a rookie? Give him an offer on minimum AFL wage, he can enrol in a uni/TAFE course and even if he does an ordinary job its no big loss. Easy to feel otherwise in the corporate AFL world, but footy clubs should still be a family and if someone has had a bad turn of luck I think I'd be proud of the RFC if they helped him secure his long-term future.
where do you draw the line?
everyone who has a bit of bad luck should be kept on in some capacity.
sets a bad example if someone has "bad luck" is given a helping hand vrs someone who has played 250 games gets the chop and no assistance.
Never will i agree. We need to be ruthless and chop guys who aren't up to it and its bad what happened but lets face it he wasn't exactly training the house down before the injury.
Footy is a business and Poly should look at other ways to secure revenue post footy like most footballers do without hanging around for some sort of handout.
-
I would like to see him get at least 4 games prior to the end of the season, he has from reports been playing cery well for Coburg, he deserves one more shoy IMO.
-
SEN news just said Polak has been cleared of any damage which is good news and he'll be monitored for the rest of the week.
-
Polly was interviewed outside of Punt Rd by Ch 10 news. He said he's seen the incident and considering what happened he's feeling good. His "mrs" was watching the game on tv so not surprisingly she was worried. Polly said the club and him haven't decided on his future yet. They'll do that in the upcoming few days.
Edit: SEVEN and NINE news have both added that Polly wants to play on. Ch 7 said wearing a helmet again.
-
Polly was interviewed outside of Punt Rd by Ch 10 news. He said he's seen the incident and considering what happened he's feeling good. His "mrs" was watching the game on tv so not surprisingly she was worried. Polly said the club and him haven't decided on his future yet. They'll do that in the upcoming few days.
Edit: SEVEN and NINE news have both added that Polly wants to play on. Ch 7 said wearing a helmet again.
You watch a lot of TV news then, eh?
:lol
-
where do you draw the line?
You draw the line at minimum (rookie) wage and on the condition that he takes on part-time study in a relevant area (business/sports management).
-
Over Polak
(http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:Bs3NZabHVOk4hM:http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z50/Scapel1337/NOWAI.jpg)
-
Well for what it's worth Caro tonight said Polak should retire. One concussion too many when he has his life ahead of him.
-
Just got back from training (full report later) and Polly trained for the whole session :thumbsup.
-
Polak to miss a week after knock
richmondfc.com.au
By Luke Homesby
Thu 01 July, 2010
GRAHAM Polak will miss this week after a sickening head collision in the VFL last week, but Richmond coach Damien Hardwick has no concerns for his long-term future.
Polak clashed heads with Werribee’s Mitch Thorp while playing for Coburg last week in a collision that saw both players fall to the ground concussed.
It is just over two years since Polak was hit by a Melbourne tram, leaving him in a coma.
Hardwick said Polak’s history of head trauma had not been a factor in the decision to rest him.
“He’s going well. We’ll probably give him a rest this week, just as a precaution. It was a very severe knock,” Hardwick said.
“Any player who is knocked out before he hits the ground we’ll probably take a very cautionary tact with. Not just because it’s Graham but because we’ll probably rest him this week.
“He’s playing some reasonable football. He’s doing everything we want him to do. He’s taking some marks up forward and kicking goals. He needs to get back and play some good football to force his way back into our side.”
http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6301/newsid/97254/default.aspx
-
from today's Sunday Herald-Sun....
Graham Polak's neurosurgeon, John McMahon, says a protective helmet would not have prevented the Richmond player being concussed in a severe head clash in the VFL last weekend.
-
from today's Sunday Herald-Sun....
Graham Polak's neurosurgeon, John McMahon, says a protective helmet would not have prevented the Richmond player being concussed in a severe head clash in the VFL last weekend.
So then you would have to question Polak's decision to play at all, just as I question Tom Lonergan's. Very courageous but life's too short.