Local football club West Jesmond FC are struggling to manage their willingness to play with the recently reported increased risk of dementia in football.

Studies in 2017 and 2019 showed the prevalence of memory problems, such as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and Alzheimer’s disease, in former footballers was a growing concern.

The 2017 study found that professional footballers had three and a half times higher rate of death from neurodegenerative diseases than other professions, thought to have been brought on by collisions during the game and heading of the ball. More research is being carried out to further understand these concerns and if they will have an impact on how the game is played in the future.

Mark Emmerson, captain and secretary of West Jesmond FC, told JesmondLocal that it would be difficult to totally eradicate heading and collision contact from the game, explaining it was a known risk that the players take when participating in contact sport.

He estimated that the average player could endure around two or three collisions and perform over 15 headers during a game.

“You would expect to be treated for head injuries a few times a season,” said Emmerson.

He added: “It is such a huge concern that will affect many across their lifetime, so more research needs to happen as it is a fundamental part of the game. The club will learn to adapt regardless, as we have had to so much this year, and it is something we would need to get used to if it was totally banned.”

Emmerson did add he doesn’t foresee a total ban in the future.

Emmerson said three years ago he suffered long-lasting damage following a fist to head collision with a goalkeeper, which resulted in a broken nose and eye socket. Four weeks later he had double vision and found out he had suffered a shift in his skull from the impact, which had caused a blockage in his head and reduced blood to the optic nerve, that had to be corrected during surgery.

“It does make you more hesitant on the pitch after suffering something like that, I’m definitely not as carefree,” he said. “If you don’t know you’re going to win the ball you probably won’t bother going for it during a tackle.”

In a 2017 BBC documentary ‘Dementia, Football and Me’, former Newcastle United player, Alan Shearer explained how the practice of football is changing and has accused football authorities of “sweeping these issues under the carpet”.

West Jesmond FC said that there is currently no advice from the Football Association (FA) or local leagues around how clubs should deal with this issue but they are looking to them for further guidance. However, the club did tell us they had almost eliminated heading in training and the game has evolved to keep the ball on the floor during game play as much as possible.

There have been concerns around how youth football teams will deal with this research after new governing body guidance has advised avoiding heading the ball altogether for children under the age of 12. Emmerson told us how he felt learning the skills to head the ball and deal with collisions properly, in a controlled environment, is extremely useful for young players, whilst we wait for more research.

The Professional Footballers Association, the player’s body, recently committed to funding more research into this area, alongside the FA, but in the meantime has advised “it is clear we need to take immediate steps to monitor and reduce heading within training” for professional teams.

It will therefore be the decision of local clubs as to whether they decide to amend their own training regimes prior to any official guidance.