Hey guys, Andy here. I was recently at Welsh rugby club Porth Harlequins who were raising awareness and support for people living with brain injuries and probable chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The day was organised with help from Marshalling Brain Injuries Alliance, a CIC whose mission is to provide practical and emotional support to anyone who is impacted by brain injuries, CTE, and concussion.
My visit was to take portraits for For the Love of the Game, a portrait project focused on concussion in sport. The project is partnered with Sam Peters, an award-winning author and former journalist, who spearheaded the Mail on Sunday’s acclaimed concussion in rugby campaign. I have written about the project and taking the portraits of notable former international players, coaches and sports scientists here.
In this instance the participants were both former professional and semi professional but also age grade, amateur, and grass roots players; players who did not earn international honours or make a living from the sport. Rather they were players for whom rugby was and continues, for some, to be a foundational element of their social lives and communities.
Carl Hamans, former rugby player diagnosed with early onset dementia and probable chronic encephalopathy (CTE) aged 52 years old.
Previous portraits of participants have been taken at event locations where I have managed to organise a private area to take the images. This allows me one on one with the participants and somewhere with no prying eyes as most people behave differently when they are being watched. At Porth Harlequins, due to the size and scope of the event, this was not possible; set up in the clubhouse bar, the community feel of a location busy with people of all ages, next to both auction shirts being signed and also a group of children with colouring-in books, was a stark contrast to previous portraits taken in private spaces. Indeed one person in front of my camera this day amusingly kept having his young daughter run over from colouring and interrupt the session.
I played amateur rugby and I served in the military, both of which are increasingly being seen as potentially causing brain injuries; the latter only now working its way through neurodegenerative related issues. I do not have, as far as I’m aware, the damage experienced by some of those who are stepping in front of my camera, however there certainly is an element of my photographic support originating from the notion of ‘There but for the grace of God, go I.’
In regards to portraits, what happens in your head, will generally express itself on your face; happy thoughts manifest as a smile, angry thoughts as anger, and so on. For this project I ask the participants to consider what concussion means to them. This could be positive; that sport is making inroads to being safer, or that a brain injury has, after years of misdiagnosis, finally been identified and thus a pathway and treatment can be planned. However most facial expressions I witness are less positive; I have captured flashes of defiance and resolution but, more often than not, there is simply sadness.
Knowing that people will go to mentally dark places means I limit myself to between three to six frames per person for this project; I do not wish for anyone to stay in such a frame of mind for any longer than necessary.
Lenny Woodard, former dual-code Welsh international rugby player and the highest try scorer in Welsh rugby league history, diagnosed with early onset dementia aged 45 years old.
On the one hand, at Porth Harlequins there was also the horrible irony of taking portraits of former players, who believe rugby has significantly, and negatively, impacted their lives, at a location dedicated to that sport. For the Love of the Game is not an anti rugby project, rather it is about making all sport, including rugby, safer. So, on the other hand, it is positive to see a grass roots club open to the notion that the sport of choice has risks, that it needs to improve safety protocols, while also supporting those who are suffering as a result of past mistakes.
