THREE seasons ago, Simon Dwyer was a rising NRL star with the rugby league world at his feet. A City Origin forward, a future NSW Blue, the Wests Tigers backrower was fast carving out a reputation as one tough hombre.
This week, Dwyer will meet with a sports lawyer as the ex-Tigers forward explores his compensation claim options in terms of the brachial plexus injury that has left him with no feeling or movement in his right arm.
This is where it gets complicated. When Wests local junior Dwyer initially ripped five nerves from his spinal column at Campbelltown Stadium on June 23, 2011, the Tigers medical staff came under fire for allowing him to walk off the field.
It wasn’t just anyone who was launching the criticism, either, it was the NRL’s chief medical officer Ron Muratore, who told The Sunday Telegraph at the time: “I couldn’t believe they (walked Dwyer off). I wasn’t there, so I don’t know what they were thinking, but he didn’t seem like he could stand up.
“The way he was holding his arm, you could see that there was no use in that arm.
NRL FINALLY RESPONDS TO SIMON DWYER
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“If you look at the tackle, it didn’t look like it was a shoulder injury to me — it looked like a brachial plexus injury. There are five nerves that go down that arm and he’s belted them where they form at the neck.”
In a court of law, given Dwyer sustained a career-ending injury and has potentially lost millions in earnings, the question has to be posed, what does that mean?
Bear in mind, the going rate for gun backrower’s in the NRL at the moment is $600,000-a season.
To the Tigers’ credit, the club has delivered on its pledge to look after Dwyer, signing him to a three-year contract worth $360,000 to work as a club statistician.
But The Sunday Telegraph has been told they also gave him a verbal guarantee of a job for life, which has since transformed into Dwyer being off-contract as of October 31 this year and the club reviewing the entire coaching staff.
The Tigers have also paid in excess of $100,000 worth of medical bills, which given the fact Dwyer suffered a disability in the work place, is the right thing and the only thing for the rugby league club to do.
But what has the NRL done? Equally as importantly, what has the Rugby League Players Association done to support one of its own who was injured, permanently, on the field?
The RLPA has been exposed as the embarrassing toothless tiger of the code, failing to do anything to help one of its fallen.
The Tigers intend to lobby the NRL this week to begin tipping in some money to help support Dwyer for the rest of his days, with the club contacting the governing body at the start of last week to begin discussions about this case.
When Dwyer’s plight was made public, the NRL put out a statement offering to sit down and discuss potential career paths with the injured forward.
**Part of Dwyer’s three-year Tigers contract meant signing an indemnity form refraining from taking legal action against the club. He has until June 23 to decide if he wants to go down the legal road, because if he does Dwyer must do so inside three years of sustaining his injury.**
SIMON DWYER IS LEAGUE’S SECRET SHAME
Another part of Dwyer’s contract with the Tigers includes a testimonial lunch and a lump-sum pay out at the end the three-year deal. But if he decides to go legal, this is forfeited.
Dwyer, a quiet, unassuming character, does not want his case splashed everywhere and held up as a test case in terms of players and insurance and what is right and what is wrong.
Whatever course of action Simon Dwyer decides to take, rugby league needs to continue to rally around him.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/simon-dwyer-considers-legal-options-over-careerending-injury/story-fn2mcuj6-1226904373484
