Former Geelong and Essendon ruckman John Barnes has ripped the AFL for its treatment of player concussions.
The 49-year old has suffered fromย memory loss and epileptic seizures following a number of head knocks during his 202-game AFL career, according toย sen.com.au.
And now he's taking a stand against the league's attitude towards concussion with what he believes has been a poor duty of care.
It comes amidst former No. 1 pick Paddy McCartin was delisted by St Kilda to help overcome his concussion symptoms, having copped eight head knocks over his 35-game AFL career.
โIโm 100 per cent sure that the AFL are sh***ing themselves,โ Barnes told SENโs Time On.
โThey know the avalanche is coming, theyโre holding on and I donโt know what theyโre holding on for. They need to come out and make a statement.
โItโs duty of care, itโs the compensation fund that every football is entitled to, which they donโt get.
โIt wonโt be long until I canโt work at all and the AFL is not going to give a stuff about that and they think we are going away, but weโre not.
โThe fightโs real, the fightโs huge and they know they are on a hiding to nothing. Thatโs the greatest thing about it, I want to see them sit up there and say sorry and watch them all go back into their little rat holes like they do.
โThey wonโt admit it, I know they wonโt, but at least weโll get some justice โฆ not just for me but for the next footballers that come through.โ
