Better tackle technique will reduce head impacts in grassroots rugby – study

The majority of high-force head impacts in community rugby occur as a result of poor tackle technique or at the breakdown, a study has found.

Data gathered from 'smart mouthguard' studies measured head impacts in matches and training at the grassroots and elite level of the sport.

Eighty-six per cent of forces measured in the men’s community game in New Zealand were found to be the same as, or less than, those experienced in other forms of exercise such as running, jumping or skipping, while 94 per cent of forces were lower than those previously measured on people riding rollercoasters.

The data on the men’s community game came from the Otago Community Head Impact Detection (ORCHID) study, a joint project between World Rugby, mouthguard designer Prevent Biometrics, New Zealand Rugby, Otago Rugby and the University of Otago. Altogether, the study measured over 17,000 head acceleration events across more than 300 players, from senior rugby down to under-13s.

An extension of the study in the elite game followed in partnership with Ulster University and Premiership Rugby. It found that where low, medium and high-force events occurred, they were most common in tackles and carries, followed by rucks.

The study found that forwards were more likely to experience force events than backs.

Further updates into the women’s community game are currently being prepared for peer review and publication.

Results from the ORCHID trials have already been used by World Rugby to inform trials of a lower tackle height in the community game, while it has provided online training programmes for players and coaches on tackling and the breakdown.

World Rugby chair Bill Beaumont said: "These studies are concrete proof that World Rugby is putting its time,