Rugby's dementia plight exposes a chilling sting in the game's tail | Robert Kitson

The evidence is clear, the players’ stories are grim – we can only hope this is the wake-up call the game has needed

Some pieces leap easily off the keyboard. Others cause your fingers to stiffen and any exuberance to drain away instantly. No rugby correspondent ever wants to write certain columns, and this is one.

In many ways, too, the searing testimony of Steve Thompson, Alix Popham and Michael Lipman, so brilliantly told in these pages over the past two days by Andy Bull, has already laid bare the extent of the sport’s predicament.

Related: Rugby urged to improve safety quickly to reduce risk of more lawsuits

We are reaching a level where the players have got too big for their skill levels

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