{"id":657085,"date":"2026-05-08T05:46:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T05:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/657085\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T05:46:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T05:46:10","slug":"nrl-launches-landmark-health-service-for-retired-players","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/657085\/","title":{"rendered":"NRL launches landmark health service for retired players"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NRL<\/a> has today announced that the Australian Rugby League<\/a> Commission has introduced a new \u2018Past Player Health Screening and Referral Service’ for former players.<\/p>\n

A limited group of players have already undergone initial pilot screenings, with the NRL<\/a> now set to commence an awareness campaign around the initiative.<\/p>\n

The service has been developed to provide ongoing medical support and care for players once their professional careers have ended.<\/p>\n

Eligible participants include retired elite rugby league players who have featured in the NRL<\/a> (or equivalent), NRLW<\/a>, Kangaroos or Jillaroos.<\/p>\n

The free service includes;<\/p>\n

Advice and evaluation from NRL<\/a> medical officers
\nDetailed health questionnaire
\nFull medical screening
\nAppointment with a neuropsychologist for cognitive testing<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, an NRL<\/a> Medical Coordinator will assist and support each player through each step of the process.<\/p>\n

Former player James Graham<\/a>, who worked with the ARLC on the initiative alongside former star Mark Carroll, praised the program and described it as a major advancement for the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a game-changer,\u201d Graham said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery elite player will be able to access expert advice and a full health screening.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a great step for the game to ensure players are cared for in retirement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peter V’landys said the initiative was an important step in continuing player care beyond retirement.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the first time the game has provided a comprehensive medical service for every professionally retired player,\u201d V’landys said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile players are on the field, they have access to first-class medical care and support. We want that care to continue after retirement, so former players can enjoy the same quality of life as everyone else.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe health of those who have given so much to our game matters. Player wellbeing and safety is a core priority for the Commission, and I strongly encourage every retired player to take advantage of this service.\u201d<\/p>\n

The announcement comes after the NRL’s annual ‘Try July’ fundraising initiative was scrapped earlier this year.<\/p>\n

The Sportsbet campaign raised close to $2million since its inception.<\/p>\n

The donations contributed to the RLPA’s Player Hardship Fund, which supported former players across NSW, QLD and the Pacific.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The NRL has today announced that the Australian Rugby League Commission has introduced a new \u2018Past Player Health…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":657086,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-657085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=657085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657085\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/657086"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=657085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=657085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=657085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}