Alan Shearer: Dementia, Football and Me


Alan Shearer: Dementia, Football and Me

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I was a professional footballer for 20 years.

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Shearer!

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I was taught to head a football

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and practised sometimes over 100 times a day in training.

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Alan Shearer, who else?

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Never, ever did I think heading footballs could be dangerous for me.

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New research, which points to risks for professional footballers...

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Findings will fuel concerns that players' brains are being permanently damaged.

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Three of the surviving members of

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England's 1966 World Cup-winning team suffering from dementia...

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I know ex-footballers that have had this.

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As a footballer, you don't expect to die at 59 of brain damage.

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Is there a link because you head a football?

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It's a disgrace. How they could cover it up.

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I want to find out, I want to learn.

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Work, work, work, work, work! Keep pushing!

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I'm not sure how I'll feel.

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I'll be very nervous.

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Each time the ball's coming in contact with the head,

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there's just that little bit more damage.

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I don't know what I'm going to find out.

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People may be scared to find out some answers.

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You've got 50,000 members.

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Do you know how many of those have dementia?

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No, we don't.

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I'm asking the questions that should have been answered

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many, many years ago.

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Could the beautiful game be dangerous?

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'I'm Alan Shearer. I've been in football all my life.

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'I've got to say that nothing quite beats the days of being out there.

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'That's what I always dreamed of, playing at the top,

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'playing for my country and, above all, scoring goals.

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CROWD ROARS

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I scored 260 Premier League goals, a fifth of them with my head,

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which must put me at risk if there is science behind the headlines

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about dementia and football.

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And if there is scientific proof

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should I be talking about the game I love in the way I do?

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He's a good, honest, centre-half,

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and it was an excellent header, and won the game.

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'For every goal I scored with a header in a game,

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'I must have practised it 1,000 times in training.

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'Just like Jeff Astle did.

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'He was good enough to play up front for England,

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'but he was best loved at West Bromwich Albion.'

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-COMMENTATOR:

-Astle! He scores!

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Jeff Astle has achieved a record.

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He's scored in every round of the FA Cup.

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He was a great header of the ball, and scored 174 goals.

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The Baggies fans called him "The King".

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-Hello, Jeff.

-Hello, David.

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CHEERING

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# Back home, they'll be thinking about us when we are far away

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# Back home... #

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Jeff died in 2002, at the age of 59.

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At his inquest, the coroner said he'd died of dementia

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brought on by years of heading the football -

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the first time such a connection had officially been made.

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'So, I've come to the West Midlands to meet Jeff's daughter, Dawn.'

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-Hello.

-Hello.

-Thanks very much, lovely to meet you.

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-And you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

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-Fabulous, eh?

-Brilliant.

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I like the way they've got the nine in the crown.

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-Number nine, the special number nine.

-Yeah.

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So, tell us about your dad,

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when you first noticed something wasn't quite right.

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Well, he was nearly 55, and my son was born,

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and he couldn't remember his name, and he kept saying,

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"What's his name again?"

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And I said, "It's Matthew, Dad."

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And it's not like an unusual name or anything.

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And I just kept thinking, "Why can't you remember his name?"

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He suddenly came out one day and said, "Is my mum still alive?"

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And I thought,

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she's been dead, like, 17, 18 years,

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and I thought, "What's he keep saying these weird things for?"

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And it was really hard for Mum to get him to go to the doctor's

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because, as I say, he didn't think there was anything wrong.

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She got him to go in the end, to the doctor's.

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All the time he was in with the doctor,

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he was still glaring at Mum as if to say, why am I here?

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And that's when,

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I suppose, your life sort of changed forever, then,

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because they said, we're really sorry, but we think

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Jeff's got early-onset dementia.

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Do you remember how difficult were the next three or four years?

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-Take your time.

-I know.

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It was...

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..the most...

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..devastating...

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..brutal thing I've ever seen in my life.

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-It used to kill me to go and see him.

-Mm.

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He'd try and get out of a moving car.

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You were a nervous wreck around him.

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Erm... He would eat things you're not supposed to eat.

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He'd just go into the fridge and get a big scoop of butter

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in the middle of his hand, and put it in his mouth.

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And my dad had impeccable table manners. Impeccable table manners.

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It was devastating to see him just completely...change.

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He looked like Dad in the first few years.

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But when the disease really...took a hold on him...

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..the difference in how he looked...

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Um... He was 59 when he died, and he looked 159.

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And it just killed us.

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At the inquest today, the coroner heard from medical experts

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that the damage to Mr Astle's brain

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was the result of repeated minor trauma,

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probably caused by heading a heavy football.

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The pathologist who examined Dad's brain described how badly damaged it was.

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There was trauma right the way through it.

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And that's when he said it was the repeated heading of footballs that

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he believed had caused all this trauma over a period of years.

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The ruling was "industrial disease", and so, in other words,

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Dad's job had killed him. And it was a landmark decision.

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And it wasn't until 2014, when his brain was re-examined,

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and it was found that he didn't have Alzheimer's, he had CTE,

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or boxer's brain, that's when we wanted to know why, you know.

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My dad was a footballer. How did he end up with boxer's brain?

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So, you're absolutely convinced that heading a football definitely had

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-something to do...

-Definitely.

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-..with your...

-Absolutely, definitely.

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'Before I spoke with Dawn, I was aware of the Jeff Astle situation,'

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but it's only now I realise that Dawn and her family have been through sheer hell.

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Now, I've got to try and understand this a lot more

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because Dawn was mentioning boxer's brain, CTE, dementia.

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How on earth this can be involved or linked in any way with football,

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or heading a football?

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Jeff's is not an isolated case.

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Studies by University College London have revealed CTE in four more

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footballers' brains.

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'I need answers, so I'm travelling to Glasgow

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'to meet Dr Willie Stewart,

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'the pathologist who found the disease in Jeff Astle's brain.'

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Can you just explain dementia, CTE?

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Great questions.

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So, dementia is where you've got a loss of normal brain function.

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Your memory's affected, sometimes your personality's affected,

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and it can progress to other systems affected as well.

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-Right.

-It's a very loose term.

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There's lots and lots of different types of dementia.

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People are really familiar with Alzheimer's disease.

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-Yeah.

-But there are many other types of dementia, too.

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And this one that we are particularly interested in

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is chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE - much easier to say.

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And that's been around for an awful long time.

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We used to recognise it and see it fairly regularly in former boxers.

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But, actually, it could be a footballer's brain, it could be a rugby player's brain.

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It was a realisation that you didn't have to be a boxer to get this pathology,

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that, actually, it was exposure to brain injury and impacts that was the problem.

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-Is that what you found in Jeff Astle's brain?

-Yeah.

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'CTE is a form of dementia that can be found only after death.

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'So, I'm going to be looking at samples of brains

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'that have been removed.'

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I hope I'm not squeamish.

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Mind your step. Thank you.

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What we have here is, I've got three recent cases,

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we're looking at about...

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-I'm just frowning, that's all.

-Perplexed!

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..three recent cases of dementia.

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And they've all been dissected, so they're in bits.

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But just to let you see what we're dealing with.

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That is somebody who has dementia who wasn't a sports person.

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This is football. This is rugby.

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The important thing here is that, even when they've got dementia,

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there are very limited clues we have

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that allow us to say what kind of dementia they might have had.

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They're all a bit shrunken.

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They all show signs of damage in different ways.

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When we're talking about CTE or head injury-specific dementia,

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to be more accurate, physically, there isn't that much to see at all.

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It's all down a microscope.

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'It's not just my untrained eye.

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'We have to give this grey matter some colour, literally,

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'reveal the damage with dye.'

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We use special techniques to show up proteins in the brain.

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The stain we are using to show this abnormal protein up stains things brown.

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Protein appearing in the brain is abnormal,

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and is associated with people with dementia

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in that somebody who has no dementia has none of this protein.

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You see that hole in the middle?

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-Yeah, that clear hole?

-Yeah, that clear hole is a blood vessel.

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How we can spot it as CTE is that,

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the way that the protein clusters around blood vessels like that,

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it's so badly damaged that the structure of the brain has begun to disintegrate on it.

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So, you think that is down to him playing football?

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Ah. Well.

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-It's...

-The only thing we can say that links the cases that we've been seeing is

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exposure to brain injury.

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What we can't do is say exactly which part of the activity it was.

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-Yeah.

-The question people ask is, is it the heading? We can't say that.

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Because how would you that it's not because he's heading the back of someone's head

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or he had three or four elbows during a game, or...?

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Which is why I'm always very cautious when people say,

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you know, try to say it's the heading in football,

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or it's the scrum in rugby, or...

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Football heading, we just don't have information on.

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We need to understand better what happens there,

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-to be able to work out what might be happening later on.

-OK.

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It's not that reassuring because, if the greater danger comes from

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more obvious shocks to the head, well,

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I may qualify on that score.

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It would be fair to say I was a pretty robust player who gave a few knocks and took a few.

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Even so, what I did was surely never like this.

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To say this leads to CTE or especially this,

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doesn't come as any sort of surprise.

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But can CTE be caused by something as painless as heading?

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I need to find out more about precisely what happens inside a head

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that meets a football.

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Neuroscientist Dr Michael Grey has a special interest in sport concussion

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assessment and rehabilitation.

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To understand this, we have to start at the beginning.

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Football is the only sport where the head is used as an instrument to hit

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the ball.

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And so now we have to think about, what potential damage is there?

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How is the brain actually protected?

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The brain is fixed at one point here, right about where my finger is, in the brainstem here.

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And it sits within a fluid-filled bag,

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and that bag is then inside a hard skull.

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When the ball comes in contact with the head,

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what we frequently see in illustrations

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is this little red bit here,

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which would suggest that the damage is all occurring down here.

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And, in fact, that's wrong.

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What we should pay attention to is the wobbling that goes on in the brain.

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Another way to look at this is with this little jelly mould here.

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So, imagine this jelly mould here is a brain.

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And if I tap the side of the plate, like this,

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you can see the brain is wobbling.

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And that's effectively what's happening when the ball hits the head.

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What's happening inside the brain is that the nerves are getting stretched quite rapidly,

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and that's causing some structural damage to the nerves.

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The question then is, is this dangerous?

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We can get concussions from a single heading of the ball,

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if the force is strong enough,

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and this will be seen in symptoms such as seeing stars,

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such as getting a headache after heading the ball.

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That will lead to concussion, and then we should be taking players off the pitch.

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That's different than the sub-concussive injury which is still creating some damage,

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but we don't actually know that anything has happened.

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So we don't see the stars, we don't get the headache,

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everything feels fine.

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Each and every time we head the ball and we get this little wobbling,

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if there is a little bit of damage, and we don't let the brain recover,

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and we just keep back out there doing it again and again and again,

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that's probably not good for the brain.

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There is clearly much more work to be done.

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Tiny changes within the brain are hard to detect.

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How extensive might this sub-concussive damage be?

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What's easier to measure is the overall scale of the problem.

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There's 850,000 people in our country

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that are suffering from dementia.

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And there are a lot of footballers in those numbers.

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But the reality is, and the sad thing, we don't know how many.

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And that can't be right.

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I'm going to meet one of them.

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Matt Tees played professional football in the '60s and '70s

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in Scotland and England. His strong point was heading the ball.

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Matt now suffers from dementia.

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-Hello.

-Hello. How are you?

-Fine.

-I'm just admiring your gardens.

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-Oh, thank you.

-They're beautiful. Lovely to meet you. How are you?

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May and Matt, yes?

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-How are you?

-I'm all right, yeah.

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I've just had six pins and a plate put in my wrist because I fell off my cycle.

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-Oh, crikey.

-You've just had your golden wedding anniversary?

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-Yeah, yeah.

-That's 50, is it?

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-50 years, yes, yes.

-Awesome.

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-50 years, eh, Matt?

-Do I look that old?!

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She's put up with you for 50 years, has she?

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Oh, thank you!

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Ha-ha.

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-So, life's good, life's hard?

-Yes, life's very, very...

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-Good days and bad days.

-Yes, I bet, yeah.

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-We take them as they come.

-Yeah.

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We have a set routine that we must follow.

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Like, what day is it?

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Well, you can see up there, the day's put up every day.

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Matt's quiet. He doesn't talk.

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He now doesn't know that this is his house.

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-That must be so difficult for you.

-That's heartbreaking for me, Alan.

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I think I've learned to be very strong because I've had to be.

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And it's one of the few times I could have cried.

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We're into the final stages which could be

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two years, ten years, nobody knows.

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You say that with ease, as in, you've totally accepted.

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-I have to.

-Yeah.

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We have to live with that, Alan, don't we?

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And it is our way of life.

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It is Tees!

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So, tell me who you used to play for.

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-I played with Luton.

-Luton, yeah.

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And then I left Luton, and I went to...

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-What's that one?

-You played in Scotland.

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-Ah, yes.

-Then you came down to Grimsby.

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Yeah.

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And then you went to London, to Charlton, Charlton Athletic.

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-Yeah, yeah.

-Oh, aye.

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Centre-half or centre forward?

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-Centre forward.

-Goal-scorer.

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Oh, yeah.

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That is a typical photograph of Matt, up there, and heading that ball.

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That's some header.

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And there's the happy goal-scorer, Matt Tees.

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Do you...think there is a link to football?

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I think there has to be.

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-I've got no doubt about it, Alan.

-There has to be.

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Without trying hard, I can name about eight people

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Matt's played football, in this area, with,

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that's had dementia or Alzheimer's.

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-Yep.

-Wow.

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Yeah. So, that speaks volumes, in my opinion.

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My grandsons,

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two of them are really good footballers.

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And I went to watch Matt, the one in the blue shirt up there.

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Honestly, I wanted... I felt sick.

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Really? That bad?

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He plays sweeper, and he's jumping up, heading them like this.

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And I'm just, "Oh!" And my heart was going like this.

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I couldn't believe my reaction.

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Because I know what I know now.

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-Come on in, guys, hello. Nice to meet you.

-This is Joe.

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Nice to meet you, how are you?

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-Hello.

-Hello, nice to meet you.

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Left hand, I'm afraid. Hi, guys, how are you?

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-You're the centre-half, and you're the right-back?

-Yeah.

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-So you both head the ball?

-Yeah.

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-Do you take after your grandad and head the ball?

-Yes. Supposedly.

0:17:450:17:47

Yeah, do you?

0:17:470:17:49

They never saw me when I was at my best.

0:17:490:17:52

Does it worry you boys, about heading the ball?

0:17:520:17:54

No. Um...

0:17:540:17:56

Do you think about it?

0:17:560:17:57

It wouldn't, it doesn't, I don't really think about it.

0:17:570:18:00

But, if there is a link...

0:18:000:18:03

Like, I wouldn't stop doing it.

0:18:030:18:06

And has Grandma told you what she thinks of football and heading, etc?

0:18:060:18:11

Yeah, we've spoken about it before.

0:18:110:18:13

-Does that worry you?

-Um, a little bit.

0:18:130:18:16

But, obviously, I don't think...

0:18:160:18:17

It has changed a bit because, obviously,

0:18:170:18:20

when Grandpa used to do it,

0:18:200:18:22

if it was wet, the leather balls, they'd have been heavier.

0:18:220:18:26

-Whereas, nowadays, they're quite light.

-Yeah.

0:18:260:18:29

Do you think our authorities

0:18:310:18:33

would be running away from this problem?

0:18:330:18:38

I've got two sons and three grandsons, and I want research.

0:18:400:18:45

I don't want my daughter-in-laws and my grandchildren's partners

0:18:450:18:49

and wives in the future to go through what we go through now.

0:18:490:18:53

-Life's quite frightening for Matt now.

-Yeah.

0:18:530:18:57

What struck me about seeing the Tees family, it wasn't just Matt

0:18:570:19:01

that's suffering, it's May that has to carry everything.

0:19:010:19:07

And the grandkids.

0:19:070:19:08

It surprises me that they're so keen, and wanting,

0:19:080:19:12

and willing to go out and head balls,

0:19:120:19:15

despite seeing their grandad in the way he is,

0:19:150:19:20

and what their grandma has to deal with.

0:19:200:19:24

Are Matt's grandchildren putting themselves in harm's way by heading the ball?

0:19:250:19:30

I'm returning to Scotland to see if science has the answer.

0:19:300:19:33

I did science at school. I did a lot of things at school

0:19:330:19:36

but other than football, I wasn't very good at school!

0:19:360:19:38

HE CHUCKLES

0:19:380:19:39

At the University of Stirling, studies are under way

0:19:400:19:43

specific to heading a football.

0:19:430:19:45

It's ground-breaking work in the UK,

0:19:450:19:47

prompted by worries about old players.

0:19:470:19:51

We'd started getting reports of concerns of the effects of long-term

0:19:530:19:57

heading in football.

0:19:570:19:59

-Yeah.

-Erm, so we decided to set up a laboratory controlled trial,

0:19:590:20:05

erm, where we mimicked the effects of heading a ball

0:20:050:20:10

in a training drill, as in a cross kick from a corner into the goal.

0:20:100:20:16

But importantly, what we did was we put together psychology

0:20:160:20:20

-and physiology to look at the effects of this impact of the ball on the head.

-Yeah.

0:20:200:20:25

Until quite recently, that was difficult, to,

0:20:250:20:28

-to look almost inside the brain...

-Yeah.

-..at what's going on.

0:20:280:20:30

And now we have that technology from basic science, we can apply that

0:20:300:20:35

and, and really start to understand what is the direct impact.

0:20:350:20:40

My guess would be it's not so much heading

0:20:400:20:42

a football in a match, it's actually doing it in training.

0:20:420:20:46

-Heading the ball once is not going to give you brain damage.

-Yeah.

0:20:460:20:49

And we're not talking about brain damage.

0:20:490:20:51

-We're talking about the brain changes...

-Yeah.

-..

0:20:510:20:54

That are...short-lived but repeated over and over again, and yes,

0:20:540:20:57

we are most worried about the practice drills.

0:20:570:21:02

And how, how far, erm, have you come?

0:21:020:21:04

What results have you had?

0:21:040:21:07

The first time we tried it, erm, it was very clear, erm,

0:21:070:21:12

that there are immediate brain changes after heading the ball.

0:21:120:21:19

'The research they've been doing has focused on modern players but first,

0:21:190:21:22

'we're going to examine the leather footballs of Jeff and Matt's era.'

0:21:220:21:28

A lot of the thought is that, that the older balls were heavier, erm...

0:21:280:21:31

-Had to have been, mustn't they?

-But I'd be curious to find out what you

0:21:310:21:34

think when you are heading the ball.

0:21:340:21:36

-OK.

-Is that OK?

-Absolutely.

0:21:360:21:39

-Right. OK, ready?

-Yeah.

0:21:390:21:40

-That actually feels lighter.

-Good point.

0:21:430:21:46

So when we weighed them, these, this was actually about 40g lighter

0:21:460:21:49

-than this one.

-Right.

0:21:490:21:50

-But the issue with these balls were the fact, when they got wet...

-Yeah.

0:21:520:21:55

..and all the stitching got soaked and everything else...

0:21:550:21:57

-Yeah.

-..what we've done is actually soaked a ball in water for two hours

0:21:570:22:01

and what we'll do, we'll weigh it, so...

0:22:010:22:04

-OK.

-Because we weighed it beforehand so just to see if the weight has changed.

0:22:060:22:10

So it's gained quite a bit of weight.

0:22:130:22:15

-That was 390g, we weighed it.

-Right.

0:22:150:22:18

And that's now 595g.

0:22:180:22:21

So you can see there, there is an issue with, when the ball is wet,

0:22:210:22:25

it would have weighed a lot more, no question.

0:22:250:22:27

Thankfully, I didn't have to head those big, leather, brown, ugly,

0:22:290:22:33

wet balls, which were incredibly heavy when wet.

0:22:330:22:38

It seems to me the guys in the '60s and '70s got a bit of a raw deal,

0:22:390:22:43

having to head those things.

0:22:430:22:46

I'm now going to do my bit to measure what happens

0:22:460:22:49

when the ball I did play with meets my head.

0:22:490:22:53

'19 players have been tested so far.

0:22:530:22:56

'Meet number 20.

0:22:560:22:57

'What precisely will be going on inside this head of mine

0:22:580:23:01

'when it goes back to doing its old job?'

0:23:010:23:03

We're going to do a battery of tests to look at the effects of heading a football.

0:23:030:23:08

Erm, first of all, we'll be doing a cognitive, erm, test.

0:23:080:23:13

-What's a cognitive test?

-A test of reaction time and of memory.

0:23:130:23:18

What type of questions? I hope they're nice and easy ones!

0:23:180:23:21

-Well, they start easy and they get more difficult.

-OK.

0:23:210:23:25

Brilliant, so in the first test, you'll see six white boxes.

0:23:250:23:28

Erm, they'll open up in a random order.

0:23:280:23:31

There's going to be a pattern inside one of the boxes to start off with.

0:23:310:23:35

You have to remember where the pattern is.

0:23:350:23:39

I'll be doing these tests before my headers and again afterwards,

0:23:400:23:44

and we'll compare the results.

0:23:440:23:47

-Oh, did I get it wrong?

-You must have got one wrong.

-Oh.

0:23:470:23:51

-I feel like I'm back at school now.

-Yeah.

0:23:510:23:54

OK, so this time, we're going to do the same thing but

0:23:550:23:58

there's going to be three patterns, so it does get progressively more...

0:23:580:24:01

Here's where it gets interesting.

0:24:010:24:03

Oh!

0:24:050:24:06

SCREEN BLEEPS

0:24:060:24:08

Got it wrong again, haven't I?

0:24:090:24:10

Wa-hey!

0:24:130:24:15

-OK, so we're onto the second test.

-OK.

0:24:150:24:17

This one is a test of your spatial working memory.

0:24:170:24:19

Excellent.

0:24:220:24:24

-The next stage, we're going to be using this press pad.

-OK.

0:24:240:24:27

PAD BLEEPS

0:24:330:24:34

-So am I a genius or what, then?

-Yeah, I think you definitely are.

0:24:350:24:39

I thought we were going to be here all afternoon.

0:24:390:24:42

-OK, Alan, what we're going to do now is look at your balance.

-OK.

0:24:420:24:45

We want to see if that changes as a result of doing the heading.

0:24:450:24:49

If you want to stand on the balance board.

0:24:490:24:53

Try and keep the circle in the centre of the screen.

0:24:530:24:57

OK, and step down.

0:25:030:25:04

Perfect. Very good.

0:25:050:25:06

So that's you done with the balance thing, so now we'll move next door.

0:25:060:25:10

What we're going to do now, a bit of a magnetic stimulation on the top of your brain...

0:25:100:25:14

-Right.

-..to see how your muscle responds.

0:25:140:25:17

So, if you want to give a couple of contractions.

0:25:170:25:20

-Right, so you see that activity there?

-Yes.

0:25:240:25:26

That's your brain instructing the muscle to contract,

0:25:260:25:28

so it sends electrical impulses down to the muscle.

0:25:280:25:31

So when you see these blue bits, here...

0:25:310:25:33

-Yeah.

-..that's your electrical activity in the muscle.

0:25:330:25:38

And we're going to be measuring what happens

0:25:380:25:40

when we actually give a stimulus from the brain.

0:25:400:25:44

This is called transcranial magnetic stimulation.

0:25:440:25:47

It works by placing this coil over your head.

0:25:470:25:50

-So depending on where Tom stimulates...

-Yeah.

0:25:500:25:52

..you'll see a twitch in a different muscle.

0:25:520:25:56

-Oh, right. We'll see a twitch, will we?

-Yeah, we'll see a twitch.

0:25:560:26:00

This measure looks at how easy the signal travels

0:26:000:26:04

from your brain to the muscle.

0:26:040:26:07

And push up.

0:26:080:26:11

Halfway there.

0:26:110:26:12

MACHINE CLICKS

0:26:140:26:18

And relax.

0:26:210:26:22

-Good. How did that feel?

-Fine.

-OK.

0:26:220:26:25

That's the "before" tests done.

0:26:260:26:28

After I've headed the ball 20 times, we'll do the same tests again,

0:26:280:26:32

and the team will compare before and after.

0:26:320:26:35

Now, the bit in the middle.

0:26:350:26:37

This is where it gets interesting.

0:26:380:26:39

OK. Ready, and three, two, one...

0:26:390:26:42

Perfect. That's one.

0:26:420:26:44

-Good header!

-That's very good.

0:26:440:26:46

See, now I'm meant to run away with my arm in the air.

0:26:460:26:49

Celebrate!

0:26:500:26:51

And three, two, one.

0:26:530:26:55

-Ah, I missed that one.

-Couple more.

0:26:560:26:58

Good header!

0:26:580:27:00

-Very good.

-Last one.

0:27:000:27:01

In three, two, one. Excellent.

0:27:040:27:08

-Perfect.

-Right, that's us. You've successfully completed the heading protocol, well done.

0:27:080:27:11

-Cool.

-We'll take the headband off you.

-OK.

0:27:110:27:15

-Go straight through, eh?

-Yeah, we'll go straight through.

0:27:150:27:18

-Through to the lab.

-Yeah.

0:27:180:27:20

See what damage it's done.

0:27:200:27:21

HE GRUNTS

0:27:240:27:25

I'll have a red head, now.

0:27:280:27:29

My hair used to cover it when I was playing!

0:27:290:27:32

So what differences do you think you'll see, here, if any?

0:27:320:27:37

Some changes in the way your brain communicates with the muscles.

0:27:370:27:41

-Maybe the impulses take a bit longer to get down or coming up a bit smaller.

-OK.

0:27:410:27:45

Good. Keep it there. Nice and steady.

0:27:460:27:49

That's really good.

0:27:490:27:50

'I can't say I enjoyed the jolts going through my skull that much.

0:27:520:27:56

'The balance test, the cognitive tests, and now we wait.'

0:27:560:28:01

-OK, we've, we've found some interesting results.

-Good or bad?

-Well...

0:28:010:28:06

I don't know how you found the cognitive testing.

0:28:060:28:08

The results look quite similar to

0:28:080:28:09

those that we were finding in the study itself.

0:28:090:28:11

-You did better on the eight-item portion the first time around.

-Yeah.

0:28:110:28:15

-And then you did worse in that the second time around.

-Yeah.

0:28:150:28:18

-We had no change in your balance.

-Right.

0:28:180:28:20

If anything, a slight improvement, which we also found in the study,

0:28:200:28:24

probably slightly to do with a learning effect.

0:28:240:28:27

Magdalena will tell you a little bit about the brain changes we got.

0:28:270:28:30

OK.

0:28:300:28:33

So, remember that we stimulated your brain

0:28:330:28:35

and we looked at the neural signal as it travelled from the brain

0:28:350:28:38

-to the muscle it controls.

-Yeah.

0:28:380:28:41

And, erm, we do find in you what we also found in the study,

0:28:410:28:45

-so the blue line is your first time, before heading the ball.

-Right.

0:28:450:28:50

And, you see the stem, that big peak at the start.

0:28:500:28:55

-Yeah.

-And then you see silence.

0:28:550:28:57

-Yeah.

-And then it starts scribbling again.

0:28:570:29:00

And then you can see in the red graph underneath that.

0:29:000:29:02

-After heading the ball, that that period is longer.

-Right.

0:29:020:29:06

That means there's higher levels of inhibition in, in the brain.

0:29:060:29:10

Right. Which means?

0:29:100:29:13

So really what we are seeing here, after heading the ball,

0:29:130:29:16

it's a disruption of the normal brain chemistry.

0:29:160:29:20

If I came in here and looked at the graph, I would say

0:29:200:29:23

it looked pretty similar but there is a difference, as in,

0:29:230:29:26

it is a little bit slower, the second one,

0:29:260:29:28

than it is the first one, which...

0:29:280:29:30

But when, if you come to think of it,

0:29:300:29:33

then heading a football at 20 or 25mph,

0:29:330:29:36

20 balls like I did in quick succession,

0:29:360:29:39

then you would think it has to do something.

0:29:390:29:43

That arrow afterwards is slightly to the right.

0:29:430:29:45

It takes longer to return to normal.

0:29:450:29:47

And in an hour or two's time, we'd expect that to go back to normal.

0:29:470:29:51

We don't know, because no research has been done,

0:29:510:29:54

-what happens when you head the ball 50 times.

-Yeah.

0:29:540:29:56

-Or you do it again tomorrow, and the next day and the next day.

-Right.

0:29:560:30:00

So the cumulative effects, we don't know how they add up,

0:30:000:30:03

and our suspicion is that if you start looking at that,

0:30:030:30:06

you might find more evidence for

0:30:060:30:08

changes in brain health as a function of heading the ball.

0:30:080:30:12

'I'm leaving Stirling, grateful that I didn't play

0:30:120:30:15

'with the old ball when it got wet,

0:30:150:30:17

'but slightly worried that heading any kind of ball

0:30:170:30:20

'causes changes to the brain.'

0:30:200:30:21

There's still work to be done.

0:30:230:30:25

Football should be encouraging these universities to do as much research

0:30:250:30:29

as possible. But like everything else,

0:30:290:30:32

these universities need funding.

0:30:320:30:35

There's enough money around nowadays in football.

0:30:360:30:39

Just not enough of it has been given to research.

0:30:390:30:41

It's about time that we had more definitive answers.

0:30:410:30:46

'I've met scientists who are concerned, like me,

0:30:480:30:50

'but what about fellow footballers?

0:30:500:30:52

'I'm meeting up with an ex-player who was also my first manager,

0:30:520:30:56

'Chris Nicholl.

0:30:560:30:57

'He taught me so much when it came to heading.'

0:30:570:31:01

-Hey! How are you? Nice to see you.

-I'm good.

0:31:010:31:04

-Nice to see you.

-Mate, I'm very good.

0:31:040:31:05

-You haven't changed a bit.

-All the better for seeing you.

0:31:050:31:08

-And you, thanks.

-Yeah. I've still got more hair than you.

0:31:080:31:12

I know, it's terrible. See, that's what you've done to me!

0:31:120:31:14

-COMMENTATOR:

-Here's Nicholl. Oh, yes!

0:31:140:31:17

Chris was 20 years a player before he went into management,

0:31:170:31:20

a League Cup winner with Aston Villa.

0:31:200:31:22

He joined Southampton as a centre- half, then rejoined them as manager.

0:31:220:31:27

He gave me my big break in the game.

0:31:270:31:29

Do you remember those days at Southampton?

0:31:290:31:31

-I do, yeah.

-Do you, do you?

0:31:310:31:33

Not... Like, I'm brain-damaged from heading balls

0:31:330:31:37

-but you never headed enough, did you?

-I did, I headed far too much.

0:31:370:31:40

The reason why is that you had me in the gym most Tuesdays and Thursdays...

0:31:400:31:44

-Was it?

-..in the gym at Southampton...

-Yeah.

0:31:440:31:47

..chucking balls in the air for me to constantly head balls.

0:31:470:31:51

-Now my memory's terrible.

-So it's my fault?!

0:31:510:31:53

Do you genuinely believe that heading balls is...

0:31:530:31:56

-Yes, I do.

-..a cause, partly to blame for it?

0:31:560:31:59

Because my memory is in trouble.

0:31:590:32:00

-Yeah.

-I forget things.

0:32:000:32:03

I forget regular things like,

0:32:030:32:05

when you forget where your keys are, I mean, that, all people do that.

0:32:050:32:11

But when you forget where you live, somebody says, "Where do you live?" and it won't...

0:32:110:32:17

How long have, how long have you had that?

0:32:170:32:19

How long have you felt like that? Can you remember? Do you know?

0:32:190:32:22

Well, the last, the last... Four, five years.

0:32:220:32:25

-Have you, yeah?

-Something like that.

0:32:250:32:26

-And it's getting worse, you think, yeah?

-Yeah. It is definitely getting worse.

0:32:260:32:30

-Have you been to the doctors?

-No.

-To...?

0:32:300:32:32

-No.

-Why?

0:32:320:32:34

Because I wouldn't change anything, anyway.

0:32:340:32:37

-But...

-They wouldn't change the way...

-They could help you.

-Well... Maybe, yeah.

0:32:370:32:41

-So you...?

-But I do forget things.

-Mm.

0:32:410:32:45

-When somebody says, "Where do you live", and you've forgotten that...

-Yeah, yeah.

0:32:450:32:48

Like that, that... Is a bit of a message.

0:32:480:32:52

Does it worry you, how you are?

0:32:520:32:54

-It bothers me, yeah.

-Does it?

-It does bother me.

0:32:540:32:56

But doesn't worry you enough to go to a doctor?

0:32:560:32:59

No. No. I still wouldn't change it.

0:32:590:33:01

And stop being big and brave and bravado.

0:33:010:33:04

-No, no.

-Does it not worry you it can get worse?

0:33:040:33:06

I know I'm getting worse, because...

0:33:060:33:10

Things like... Oh, where have I put that knife

0:33:100:33:13

or where have I put my toast or...

0:33:130:33:16

Yeah, yeah. ..It goes!

0:33:160:33:18

CROWD CHEERS

0:33:180:33:19

Even knowing that it does damage your brain, I wouldn't change...

0:33:210:33:24

-You'd still do it.

-I would not change a thing

0:33:240:33:26

because it was my job. You go and head it.

0:33:260:33:30

-But you would also be...

-I would worry if you wanted to change the way you did...

0:33:300:33:33

-I know.

-Because I was part of that.

0:33:330:33:37

My immediate reaction is, his attitude is

0:33:380:33:41

so typical of football, of footballers.

0:33:410:33:44

Erm, doesn't want help,

0:33:440:33:47

doesn't want to admit that help could be, I think,

0:33:470:33:52

a huge advantage to him, which is very concerning, very worrying.

0:33:520:33:56

Football's reluctance to do anything was changed

0:33:580:34:00

when brain damage was addressed elsewhere,

0:34:000:34:02

namely in American football.

0:34:020:34:06

And once the connection was made between brain trauma and CTE,

0:34:060:34:11

the National Football League moved quickly to set up

0:34:110:34:13

a compensation fund worth three-quarters of a billion dollars.

0:34:130:34:17

Across the United States and across all sports,

0:34:180:34:21

protecting the head is fully on the agenda.

0:34:210:34:24

But on Monday, the US Soccer Federation took the bold step

0:34:240:34:26

of eliminating heading from youth soccer

0:34:260:34:28

in an effort to reduce the number of concussions.

0:34:280:34:32

Per the new rules, children ten and under will be banned from heading

0:34:320:34:35

the ball during any official session.

0:34:350:34:37

The banning of heading the ball in the United States is

0:34:370:34:39

really more about concussion, rather than heading the ball over and over.

0:34:390:34:43

It's really about when these kids go up for a challenge,

0:34:430:34:47

their heads come in contact with other heads,

0:34:470:34:50

or they hit an arm or they fall on the floor, erm, and that,

0:34:500:34:53

that creates more significant damage in the brain.

0:34:530:34:57

Young girls seem to get concussion more frequently than young boys

0:34:570:35:02

so we don't really know why that is. We need to understand that.

0:35:020:35:05

Now, the problem is, we don't have conclusive scientific evidence

0:35:050:35:10

to suggest that heading the ball in young children

0:35:100:35:16

is going to lead to neurodegeneration later in life.

0:35:160:35:19

We know for example that children have large heads and small necks,

0:35:190:35:23

so there's more wobbling of the brain inside the skull,

0:35:230:35:26

therefore that can lead to more damage compared with an adult.

0:35:260:35:30

The other issue that we have is that children's brains are still

0:35:300:35:34

developing and they don't have the same neural protection

0:35:340:35:37

as does an adult.

0:35:370:35:38

We don't have conclusive evidence that that is then leading to

0:35:380:35:42

problems later in life or problems in school.

0:35:420:35:47

I tend to agree with the idea that very young children really shouldn't be heading the ball.

0:35:470:35:51

I think we have sufficient evidence that certainly,

0:35:510:35:54

from my point of view, I wouldn't want my children, erm, heading...

0:35:540:35:57

You know, playing on a team where they are heading the ball,

0:35:570:36:01

day in and day out. I don't think it's worth the risk.

0:36:010:36:05

'Imagine if the game without heading became the new football for everyone at every level.

0:36:050:36:11

'An old England team-mate of mine went into coaching.

0:36:110:36:13

'Les Ferdinand, first with Tottenham Hotspur,

0:36:130:36:15

'now Director of Football at Queens Park Rangers.

0:36:150:36:18

'He is aware of the debate and his responsibility for keeping his young footballers safe.'

0:36:180:36:23

'It was very different when he first started heading the ball.'

0:36:230:36:26

One of the coaches was having a laugh and saying,

0:36:260:36:28

"Oh, it's all right, the young boys don't head balls",

0:36:280:36:31

-so I made it my mission to be able to head balls.

-Yeah.

0:36:310:36:33

From doing all that, it was a major concern for me, you know,

0:36:330:36:37

when I started hearing all this.

0:36:370:36:39

Did you ask the young boys at Tottenham

0:36:410:36:43

when you were a coach there, or tell them that they had to

0:36:430:36:46

improve their heading, they had to do heading practices?

0:36:460:36:49

I didn't tell them. They came to me and wanted to improve it.

0:36:490:36:52

-Right, OK.

-Because it was kind of like one of my fortes.

0:36:520:36:54

-Yeah.

-So I carried on, you know,

0:36:540:36:56

teaching people that wanted to learn the way that I learned.

0:36:560:37:00

Because you're aware now of the issue and the subject,

0:37:000:37:04

would you ever consider changing training techniques

0:37:040:37:08

for the young boys that are coming through the system here at QPR?

0:37:080:37:13

I think what I'd do is, you know, I'd want to see more research.

0:37:130:37:17

I would speak to the coaches and we will have this discussion about what

0:37:170:37:20

we do with the players because, you know, in America

0:37:200:37:22

they've banned it so everyone's talking about it and that's,

0:37:220:37:25

that's gathering momentum.

0:37:250:37:27

And whether we need to work the technique with soft balls.

0:37:270:37:30

-Yeah.

-Just until we can gather some more information,

0:37:300:37:33

to know if this is good for football or not.

0:37:330:37:36

'Changes in training, changes on the field.'

0:37:370:37:41

As he was most of the game, he was first to the corner.

0:37:410:37:44

He wanted it more than they did.

0:37:440:37:45

'Long ball football - the English game for so many years,

0:37:450:37:48

'of firing the ball out of the defence,

0:37:480:37:50

'high towards a big man up front,

0:37:500:37:52

'has given way to a more subtle game,

0:37:520:37:54

'a game played with the ball kept on the grass, played to the feet.'

0:37:540:37:59

Fabulous football.

0:37:590:38:01

'Expert headers of the ball have had to adapt.

0:38:010:38:04

'John Terry, for example, five times a Premier League champion

0:38:040:38:07

'with Chelsea, still playing at Aston Villa.'

0:38:070:38:10

So you definitely think there, you don't head the ball now as much,

0:38:110:38:15

one, in training, or two, in a game, as you did years ago?

0:38:150:38:17

Yeah, in training, it's probably, probably zero, actually,

0:38:170:38:21

-because the ball's probably 99% on the floor.

-Right.

0:38:210:38:24

I think the game's evolved over the years as well.

0:38:240:38:26

When I first come on the scene playing,

0:38:260:38:28

-the goalkeeper would kick it and I'd try and head it as far as I could back up the field.

-Right.

0:38:280:38:31

I think the distance side of it has kind of gone out of the game a little bit.

0:38:310:38:35

With the managers that you had over the years,

0:38:350:38:37

has there been a different feeling towards heading,

0:38:370:38:40

regarding foreign coaches, or the English coaches?

0:38:400:38:43

Well, I think the English coaches, definitely, kind of, my early days,

0:38:430:38:46

YTS days, first-year pros, that kind of thing,

0:38:460:38:48

was really kind of specified on, you know, doing that in training, training drills.

0:38:480:38:55

I think as the foreign coaches come in, it was a case of,

0:38:550:38:57

"Right, can you chest it? Can you bring it down?"

0:38:570:38:59

But I'm seeing hardly anything at all in training.

0:38:590:39:01

Yeah.

0:39:010:39:02

Unless you're doing the shooting exercise and you might, you know, score.

0:39:020:39:05

Compared to when you first started training, many years ago.

0:39:050:39:08

Yeah, 100%. And that's, that's been the case for the last, probably six, seven years for me,

0:39:080:39:12

so I think as the game is kind of getting better and we're learning,

0:39:120:39:15

-you know, it's going to help in the future anyway.

-Good.

0:39:150:39:18

Would there ever be a time that you said to your kids,

0:39:180:39:21

-"No, you're not allowed to head the ball?"

-No.

0:39:210:39:23

Because you have a boy and a girl.

0:39:230:39:24

Yeah, probably the opposite, actually.

0:39:240:39:26

My girl plays at Chelsea and actually,

0:39:260:39:28

I'm encouraging her to go and attack it.

0:39:280:39:29

Because more so in girls' football, they don't really head the ball.

0:39:290:39:33

And a kind of corner comes in,

0:39:330:39:34

and everyone kind of shies away from it a little bit,

0:39:340:39:37

and I'm trying to encourage my girl that, rather than that ball hit you

0:39:370:39:40

and kind of probably do some damage,

0:39:400:39:42

if you go and attack it and meet the ball, the contact's better.

0:39:420:39:45

You know, no point heading it on...

0:39:450:39:47

-The technique.

-Yeah, there is a technique to it.

0:39:470:39:49

And if you can do that in the right way you'll prevent hopefully anything in the future.

0:39:490:39:53

Mm-hm, yeah.

0:39:530:39:54

-The researchers actually say that girls are more at risk than boys or men.

-Yeah.

0:39:540:40:00

Does that... Will that change your feeling towards it?

0:40:000:40:03

Listen, it's my little girl. She's my world, you know?

0:40:030:40:07

I think her playing and seeing her play - she loves football...

0:40:070:40:11

No, I would still encourage her to go and attack it.

0:40:110:40:15

I think until there's real evidence to show that

0:40:150:40:17

players in the future are really suffering,

0:40:170:40:19

all we can actually pinpoint it to, to specifically heading the ball...

0:40:190:40:23

But as a parent, as my kids,

0:40:230:40:25

I wouldn't discourage them to go and head the ball.

0:40:250:40:28

Football, slow to change without more evidence,

0:40:280:40:31

but changing all the same.

0:40:310:40:34

There are protocols in place when it comes to concussion

0:40:340:40:36

which isn't the same thing as the repeated action of heading,

0:40:360:40:39

but at least shows greater respect for the head,

0:40:390:40:43

which wasn't always the case in my day.

0:40:430:40:47

There's pictures out there with me, in a bandage.

0:40:470:40:50

There's blood teeming down my face - where I've gone off,

0:40:500:40:53

I'd had stitches, they've put a bandage on.

0:40:530:40:56

I've gone and headed another ball,

0:40:560:40:57

the stitches have come out

0:40:570:40:59

and you can visibly see the blood pouring down my face,

0:40:590:41:02

which is what we did then.

0:41:020:41:06

It's what was expected of us.

0:41:070:41:09

You run off the pitch,

0:41:090:41:10

you got stitched up, and you had to go back on again.

0:41:100:41:13

'I've taken the big blows,

0:41:130:41:14

'and I played at a time when heading was still very fashionable.

0:41:140:41:18

'I've taken all those little impacts that may add up to something.

0:41:180:41:22

'I seem to qualify on all counts to ask the question, "Am I in danger?"

0:41:220:41:28

'I think the time has come to put myself to the big test,

0:41:280:41:31

'an MRI scan at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow.

0:41:310:41:36

'What damage from all that heading will be revealed?'

0:41:360:41:40

I'm a bit nervous, actually, now.

0:41:400:41:42

Oh, you shouldn't be nervous.

0:41:420:41:45

So just take a seat, Alan, and I'll get one of the radiographers

0:41:450:41:49

to go through the MRI check list with you. Okey doke. OK.

0:41:490:41:54

I'm a bit nervous, actually. They've just given me the words,

0:41:540:41:57

as in to say, "You do know that if we find something, then..."

0:41:570:42:02

I said, "Well, if you do, it's best that you tell me,

0:42:020:42:05

"so we can work on something."

0:42:050:42:07

So surgery in your lifetime, you've had tendon repair on your left knee twice.

0:42:080:42:12

-Yeah.

-ACL repair.

-Yeah.

0:42:120:42:14

-Hernias, erm, fractured, dislocated your ankle.

-Yep.

0:42:140:42:17

Is that the only things you've had?

0:42:170:42:20

Only things?! That's enough!

0:42:200:42:22

-Nothing else has slipped your mind?

-That's it, yeah.

0:42:220:42:25

Nice gear, eh?

0:42:260:42:28

THEY LAUGH

0:42:280:42:29

I'm going to do a nice, sort of, structural scan of your brain,

0:42:340:42:37

so that'll take about five minutes.

0:42:370:42:38

And then we're going to do what we call a spectroscopy scan,

0:42:380:42:41

so that actually gives us a nice profile of some of the chemicals in your brain.

0:42:410:42:45

-Right.

-And if there's any problems

0:42:450:42:47

then we can discuss that further, and inform your clinician.

0:42:470:42:50

Have you got any concerns or questions?

0:42:500:42:52

No, I think I'm all right.

0:42:520:42:53

-That's the scanner.

-Yep.

-So, Dr McLean will...

0:42:560:43:00

MACHINE BLEEPING OBSCURES SPEECH

0:43:000:43:03

OK.

0:43:040:43:05

How are you doing, Alan? Can you hear me OK?

0:43:110:43:13

-Yeah.

-OK, just going to get started - nice and still.

0:43:130:43:15

There's going to be some loud noise coming up.

0:43:150:43:18

PIERCING BLEEP

0:43:200:43:21

So we're acquiring a scan at the minute, and

0:43:250:43:28

once we've acquired that we'll plan the spectroscopy scan.

0:43:280:43:33

That's the scan that looks at the chemicals in Alan's brain.

0:43:330:43:38

And again we'll be looking to see that that's normal.

0:43:380:43:41

-You've found my brain, then?

-Absolutely. It's all right.

0:43:440:43:46

I don't like the way you're all being a bit apprehensive here.

0:43:460:43:49

-No, we're fine.

-Absolutely fine - don't worry.

0:43:490:43:52

So a nice way I think about the brain is you've got your white matter,

0:43:530:43:57

which is a bit like all the connections,

0:43:570:43:59

so you see that in light grey here, and then there's the grey matter

0:43:590:44:02

which is the cortex, so the bit on the outside.

0:44:020:44:04

The white matter's a bit like your connections,

0:44:040:44:06

with the grey matter, the bit that's doing the thinking, the processing.

0:44:060:44:09

Your brain's sitting in this sort of protective fluid,

0:44:090:44:11

so that's what... Some people think you're looking into holes in

0:44:110:44:14

the image, thinking there's holes in your brain,

0:44:140:44:16

but it's perfectly normal to have those holes.

0:44:160:44:19

We did notice you had a little artefact, we think,

0:44:190:44:21

just on the surface of your brain.

0:44:210:44:23

It might be just from a little bit of metal, maybe.

0:44:230:44:25

-Have I?

-Potentially, yeah.

-Oh. Interesting.

0:44:250:44:28

We were able to look at an area of your brain

0:44:300:44:32

and look at the sort of chemical profile for that area,

0:44:320:44:35

so this looks normal to me for that area of the brain.

0:44:350:44:38

That's reassuring. I'll take that as good news.

0:44:380:44:42

I've got some metal in my head!

0:44:430:44:46

'Just an old staple to patch me up after a clash of heads.'

0:44:460:44:50

I was a little bit nervous when I was going in there,

0:44:500:44:52

but having the news that everything is fine and is normal,

0:44:520:44:56

and the question I asked him was,

0:44:560:44:58

"If you didn't know who I was or if I'd played football for 20 years

0:44:580:45:01

"then would you look at that brain and say it was perfectly normal?"

0:45:010:45:06

The answer came back and he said it was perfectly normal and all fine.

0:45:060:45:09

So very good news.

0:45:090:45:10

'In general, I've come through it pretty well.

0:45:120:45:15

'I'm as relieved as an old pro can be, I suppose.

0:45:150:45:18

'Nothing to be worried about - for the moment.

0:45:180:45:21

'But footballers seem particularly prone to early-onset dementia.

0:45:210:45:25

'CTE stalks us.

0:45:250:45:27

'I can't shake off the idea of it,

0:45:270:45:30

'and the struggle that may lie ahead.

0:45:300:45:32

'John Stiles knows all about that. He is the son of Nobby,

0:45:350:45:38

'Man United legend and the cheeky face of a golden age.

0:45:380:45:41

'Nobby is one of the 1966 World Cup heroes struck down by dementia.'

0:45:410:45:47

-How's your dad?

-Poorly.

0:45:470:45:48

-Is he?

-Yeah, Alan, he's got advanced dementia, so he's now in a home.

0:45:480:45:54

It's just terrible to watch the person that you love,

0:45:540:45:56

especially somebody as lively and as nice a person as my dad,

0:45:560:46:00

just disappear, really.

0:46:000:46:02

LAUGHTER

0:46:020:46:04

Do you hold the game responsible?

0:46:050:46:08

I'm utterly convinced that heading the ball in training...

0:46:080:46:12

..is, I believe it's responsible, but that's only my opinion.

0:46:140:46:18

Are you angry, and if so what are you angry about?

0:46:180:46:22

What I'm really angry about, Alan,

0:46:220:46:24

is that it's been known for a long time now,

0:46:240:46:27

since Jeff Astle's diagnosis,

0:46:270:46:29

a coroner actually said heading the ball has contributed to killing him.

0:46:290:46:33

-What I am angry about is, in that time, nothing's been done.

-Yeah.

0:46:330:46:37

And dementia is treated as a different...

0:46:370:46:39

It's not treated as a disease.

0:46:390:46:41

It's treated like old-age, so you've got to cover the costs yourself.

0:46:410:46:44

And all these families, as well as watching their loved one disappear,

0:46:440:46:48

have got no help, and most of them have had to sell their homes to pay for the care.

0:46:480:46:52

Now if that's been caused by heading the ball, that's a disgrace.

0:46:520:46:56

Mm. What do you feel that needs to be done?

0:46:560:46:59

I think, as they've done in America - they've banned it for under 11s -

0:46:590:47:02

I think they should do that now.

0:47:020:47:04

Banning heading now for kids?

0:47:040:47:06

Well, I believe so.

0:47:060:47:08

In the matches, you head the ball maybe - what, three, four times, maybe?

0:47:080:47:13

But it's the training. It's the training that's the problem.

0:47:130:47:16

And I think coaches shouldn't be throwing missiles at kids' heads

0:47:160:47:20

for them to head it back.

0:47:200:47:22

Until we know, they should absolutely stop kids heading balls.

0:47:220:47:26

My oldest son now is 33. He tried to be a footballer.

0:47:260:47:30

And I don't feel a guilt, as such, but if my boy ends up developing problems,

0:47:310:47:36

that could've been prevented, and that's a disgrace.

0:47:360:47:40

-Yeah, that has to be a concern and a worry for you.

-Yeah.

0:47:400:47:44

And I'm almost complicit in that.

0:47:440:47:47

I can see why football is reluctant to change its rules.

0:47:470:47:50

No heading would be like cricket without fast bowling,

0:47:500:47:53

or rugby banning tackling,

0:47:530:47:56

but there's also the question of the duty of care.

0:47:560:47:59

Players who really aren't that old going into care homes to die.

0:47:590:48:04

Who can help?

0:48:040:48:06

Well, there's the Professional Footballers' Association,

0:48:060:48:08

the PFA, the players' union.

0:48:080:48:11

And there's the Football Association, the FA,

0:48:110:48:13

the sport's governing body.

0:48:130:48:15

Of course, they need the facts first.

0:48:150:48:19

Facts that come from research - scientific research.

0:48:190:48:22

Dawn Astle has campaigned for answers from the authorities

0:48:240:48:27

since her dad's death 15 years ago.

0:48:270:48:29

'But are they out there looking for them?'

0:48:300:48:33

The PFA and the FA started a study back in 2001,

0:48:330:48:36

which was actually before Dad died, but

0:48:360:48:39

I had an e-mail off the FA to say, unfortunately, you know,

0:48:400:48:43

it didn't reach its conclusions because they've done it on 30-odd

0:48:430:48:46

youngsters in the game and none of them made it as pros

0:48:460:48:48

so they fell away, so it only lasted a few years.

0:48:480:48:50

So that was so bitterly, bitterly disappointing.

0:48:520:48:56

So it's as if it collapsed, they thought we'd gone away,

0:48:560:48:58

and they just left it - and that's wrong.

0:48:580:49:01

I know you have had meetings that you have asked questions,

0:49:010:49:06

and they have promised you they would send questions to Fifa,

0:49:060:49:10

and that was two or three years ago,

0:49:100:49:12

and you're still waiting for answers. Is that correct?

0:49:120:49:15

Football doesn't seem to want to know.

0:49:150:49:17

And it SHOULD want to know. It's not just about Dad now.

0:49:170:49:21

It's about all these former footballers and their families,

0:49:210:49:24

who have come forward, very bravely.

0:49:240:49:27

I said, "It's not just about the past now.

0:49:270:49:30

"It's about football's future."

0:49:300:49:31

You know, we've got to protect, you know,

0:49:310:49:33

kids into the game, you know, football's future.

0:49:330:49:38

The PFA, they only exist for player welfare.

0:49:380:49:41

They should be screaming from the rooftops for these players.

0:49:410:49:44

This is killing their players. This should be their priority.

0:49:440:49:48

'The surprising thing for me is, actually, no-one has stood up

0:49:480:49:51

'and said, "You know what,

0:49:510:49:53

'"we got this one wrong - we should have looked at it more."'

0:49:530:49:57

No-one's said, "Yeah, we've messed up here.

0:49:570:49:59

"We had a chance to do something 15 years ago, and we haven't."

0:49:590:50:04

'What is being done, or what isn't being done?

0:50:040:50:06

'Gordon Taylor has been chief executive of

0:50:060:50:08

'the players' union, the PFA, for 36 years.

0:50:080:50:11

'Looking after players past and present is what he does.'

0:50:110:50:18

You've got 50,000 members.

0:50:180:50:20

-Do we know how many of those have dementia?

-No, I don't.

0:50:200:50:25

Is that difficult to do? Can we not...

0:50:250:50:27

Is that not an easy thing to do?

0:50:270:50:28

At the moment, with modern technology,

0:50:280:50:30

we're looking to try to establish a really effective database.

0:50:300:50:35

There's an anger from my side, because over the last 12 months,

0:50:350:50:40

having sat down with families who have lost loved ones,

0:50:400:50:46

there's a lot of them feel as if they've been left on their own.

0:50:460:50:50

I think it's the PFA's job to do all we can to look, to provide support.

0:50:500:50:56

We have said money is going to be put towards research,

0:50:560:51:00

and also towards respite care for the more and more former players who need help.

0:51:000:51:06

I went up and spoke to Willie Stewart, and I said to him,

0:51:060:51:09

"What is it you need?" And he said, "Well, we need research."

0:51:090:51:12

-Mm.

-And, well, I'm thinking, well, hang on a minute, we started...

0:51:120:51:17

Remember here we started the research in 2002.

0:51:170:51:20

It's now 2017, and it seems as if we're no further forward.

0:51:200:51:24

Well, it's...

0:51:240:51:25

Because it seems as if the same questions are still being asked.

0:51:250:51:28

They are. The issue of the lower level but continuous problems,

0:51:280:51:31

with heading a ball, and whether it will have long-term effects,

0:51:310:51:35

is something we are looking to establish -

0:51:350:51:37

either a definitive link, or not at all.

0:51:370:51:39

And from that point of view,

0:51:390:51:41

the first research we've done was inconclusive,

0:51:410:51:45

but we are prepared to commit the money to research.

0:51:450:51:49

Do you think it's being swept under the carpet,

0:51:490:51:52

because of people who've been scared to face lawsuits?

0:51:520:51:57

Well, it has been put to me that maybe the clubs are very wary

0:51:570:52:02

because there may be compensation. And I said, well, you know,

0:52:020:52:05

you can only be negligent if you know for certain

0:52:050:52:08

that there is this link.

0:52:080:52:10

But what I am saying is football has a duty to see

0:52:100:52:13

-if there is a causal link...

-Yeah.

0:52:130:52:15

..because if there is,

0:52:150:52:17

it could significantly increase the problems in later life.

0:52:170:52:22

Then we'd need to look at the rules of the game, and address it.

0:52:220:52:26

I have been disappointed with Fifa,

0:52:260:52:30

but as the governing body they have not taken the lead,

0:52:300:52:32

or any of the confederations.

0:52:320:52:35

But it's fair to say the FA have now agreed

0:52:350:52:38

that we will do this together.

0:52:380:52:40

I'm not exactly bowled over by the rush to investigate.

0:52:420:52:45

Nobody in charge seems to want to know the scale of the problem,

0:52:450:52:49

if there is one.

0:52:490:52:50

'Football is played everywhere.

0:52:520:52:54

'The game is run by the Football Association, the FA.

0:52:540:52:58

'I've come to their home at St George's Park

0:52:580:53:00

'to see their new medical performance director,

0:53:000:53:02

'Charlotte Cowie.

0:53:020:53:06

'One of Charlotte's first tasks has been to commission research into this issue.'

0:53:060:53:11

Do you know how many footballers have got dementia?

0:53:110:53:15

I think that, in a nutshell, is the question that we are asking.

0:53:150:53:18

And it sounds quite simple. You just go to a load of footballers,

0:53:180:53:21

and say, you know, check if they've got dementia

0:53:210:53:24

and then you've got your answer.

0:53:240:53:25

What I've probably learned is to run a research project where you

0:53:250:53:30

get some answers that are reliable. It's more complicated than that.

0:53:300:53:34

We've used a panel of experts in concussion and in research

0:53:340:53:38

to try and help us formulate a study

0:53:380:53:41

that gives us an answer as quickly as possible,

0:53:410:53:44

-if we can do, but more importantly gives us some results that are really reliable.

-Yeah.

0:53:440:53:50

Tell us a little bit about that research.

0:53:500:53:51

What is it you're actually doing?

0:53:510:53:53

What we'd like to do is make it potentially a shorter study

0:53:530:53:57

by looking back at ex-professional footballers,

0:53:570:54:00

and working out whether they have health problems, including dementia.

0:54:000:54:03

We'll also look at their general health.

0:54:030:54:05

The most important thing is, is dementia more common in footballers than in the normal population?

0:54:050:54:11

That's the question that Dawn Astle and everyone else wants to know -

0:54:110:54:14

-"Is it a problem?"

-Mm.

0:54:140:54:16

And I think one of the things that we need to try and establish is

0:54:160:54:19

that if there is a link to football and dementia in some players,

0:54:190:54:24

if that is related to concussion.

0:54:240:54:26

And if that is the risk, rather than heading,

0:54:260:54:29

then we need to know that as well.

0:54:290:54:31

-They've banned heading in America for under-11s.

-Yeah.

0:54:320:54:35

What's your feeling on that?

0:54:350:54:36

Do you think we should do that in this country?

0:54:360:54:39

I think that is open for review at any point.

0:54:390:54:42

If the evidence is emerging - even early evidence -

0:54:420:54:45

then I think that's something that we always have to bear in mind,

0:54:450:54:49

but at the moment the advice that we are collecting from people who are

0:54:490:54:52

working in that area is that they don't feel that

0:54:520:54:56

that's the most logical step to take.

0:54:560:54:59

There is a lot of anger out there from people who have suffered,

0:54:590:55:02

and the families that are now suffering.

0:55:020:55:05

-Can you understand why?

-Yeah, massively.

0:55:060:55:09

I met with the Astle family. Talking to Dawn about

0:55:090:55:13

what she and her family went through,

0:55:130:55:15

watching Jeff in this sort of, the last stages of a really horrific disease...

0:55:150:55:20

-Yeah.

-Erm...

0:55:200:55:21

..probably affected me emotionally a lot, actually,

0:55:220:55:25

-and so I feel very personally invested in trying to see this through and make it happen.

-Mm.

0:55:250:55:29

And I think we're in a good place now but I do understand there's been

0:55:290:55:33

a lot of frustration and, you know, whatever the answers are,

0:55:330:55:36

a lot of heartache.

0:55:360:55:38

It seems as if people are running away from this problem. Do you get that feeling?

0:55:380:55:43

Well, I feel...

0:55:430:55:45

That's the one thing that I can say with confidence.

0:55:450:55:47

I feel we're running towards this problem at the moment.

0:55:470:55:49

-I do feel like...

-But that hasn't been the case in the past.

0:55:490:55:53

I think the FA did make a conscious decision not to wait for Fifa or

0:55:530:55:56

Uefa, and I think that was the right decision and they've done the right

0:55:560:56:00

thing on that, but it was probably a difficult decision to make.

0:56:000:56:04

As the FA are custodians of the game,

0:56:040:56:06

do you feel as if apologies are owed to the families that have suffered,

0:56:060:56:11

and still don't have any answers?

0:56:110:56:12

Erm...

0:56:120:56:13

I think...certainly we need to consider those people,

0:56:140:56:19

and then I think we need to just...

0:56:190:56:22

I think the FA just needs to get this done. That's what I would say.

0:56:220:56:25

'The research has at last been commissioned,

0:56:290:56:32

'but even before we have new findings

0:56:320:56:34

'football must look after old players with dementia,

0:56:340:56:37

'put an end to this sense that once you're done with playing

0:56:370:56:40

'you can be put on the scrapheap.

0:56:400:56:42

'Life can be confusing and scary for people with dementia,

0:56:440:56:47

'but there are support groups for those who are living with it.

0:56:470:56:51

'One such group offering support to families is Sporting Memories.

0:56:510:56:55

'Former centre forward Matt Tees has invited me along to his local group

0:56:550:56:58

'at Waltham Library in Grimsby.'

0:56:580:57:01

CHEERY HUBBUB

0:57:010:57:03

-Hello, everyone!

-Have a seat, Alan.

-Thank you.

-Welcome.

0:57:030:57:06

-Is this my seat?

-Yes.

0:57:060:57:07

By pure coincidence, we've just been doing an Alan Shearer quiz.

0:57:070:57:10

-Oh, good.

-So maybe you could answer the last question for us.

0:57:100:57:13

How many career goals did Alan have to his name

0:57:130:57:15

by the end of the '97-'98 season?

0:57:150:57:18

Can there not be an easier one for me?!

0:57:180:57:21

Career goals, '97-'98...

0:57:230:57:25

'Sporting Memories is a charity which works with elderly people

0:57:250:57:28

'who might struggle with dementia, depression or loneliness.'

0:57:280:57:33

'They use sport as a way of bringing people together.'

0:57:330:57:36

We know that people need to remain connected.

0:57:380:57:40

That's to their family, to their friends, to their communities,

0:57:400:57:44

and to their passions and interests.

0:57:440:57:45

And sport is a huge common factor in terms of getting people together.

0:57:450:57:50

-ALL:

-Yeah!

0:57:500:57:52

But we also know that to age well we need to learn new things,

0:57:530:57:57

and the Sporting Memories group,

0:57:570:57:58

you can learn so many different new things

0:57:580:58:00

around the history and heritage of sport and people's stories.

0:58:000:58:04

Denis Law!

0:58:040:58:06

We have to stress - it's not a dementia focus group.

0:58:070:58:10

-Not everybody has dementia, but...

-Majority?

-No.

0:58:100:58:12

-Minority.

-Right, OK.

0:58:120:58:14

But it's about mixing people up,

0:58:140:58:16

-it's about inclusion, integration.

-And they love it.

0:58:160:58:19

-Everybody has a fantastic time.

-Yeah, they love it, yeah.

0:58:190:58:22

'Sporting Memories have worked with

0:58:220:58:23

'the Professional Footballers' Association to produce a leaflet

0:58:230:58:26

'that can be given to former players

0:58:260:58:28

'who've been diagnosed with dementia.'

0:58:280:58:31

The guide has been written to give some practical advice

0:58:310:58:34

to people who have got that diagnosis.

0:58:340:58:37

And these are ready now?

0:58:370:58:38

They're just at the designers,

0:58:380:58:40

and the PFA will be making them available to members.

0:58:400:58:42

-Good. That's a start, then.

-Yeah.

0:58:420:58:46

'This story is about our people, footballing people,

0:58:470:58:51

'who need the custodians of the game to embrace and fund science

0:58:510:58:55

'to understand the effects of heading.'

0:58:550:58:58

The researchers are out there, because I've met them.

0:58:580:59:01

They want to do it, but they need funding.

0:59:010:59:03

But more importantly, they need raw materials

0:59:030:59:06

to conduct this research - brains.

0:59:060:59:09

Not just footballing brains or diseased brains,

0:59:090:59:12

but healthy brains from all walks of life.

0:59:120:59:15

Heading is an integral part of our game.

0:59:150:59:20

Coaches need educating to be aware of the dangers of the game,

0:59:200:59:24

but don't change the rules as yet.

0:59:240:59:27

I wouldn't ban heading, because there isn't enough evidence -

0:59:270:59:31

and I don't say that lightly.

0:59:310:59:32

I see thousands and thousands of kids, on an evening or a weekend,

0:59:320:59:35

playing football, and I don't want that to change.

0:59:350:59:39

Let science do its work.

0:59:390:59:41

Technologies are emerging to provide evidence

0:59:410:59:43

so that we can make educated decisions

0:59:430:59:45

about how we take our game forward.

0:59:450:59:49

It's a tough game, it's a brilliant game.

0:59:490:59:52

it's known as our beautiful game.

0:59:520:59:54

But let's make sure it's not a killer game.

0:59:540:59:57

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