AFL to query McCartin's concussion testing 'bludge' claims

The AFL will seek answers from St Kilda after Paddy McCartin said he "bludged" his way through pre-season concussion testing to make it easier to be allowed to play on after head knocks during games.

AFL football operations boss Steve Hocking was troubled by McCartin's comments and will meet with chief medical officer Peter Harcourt on Wednesday to discuss the matter.

The AFL is concerned at the idea that players believe they can cheat the doctors and that they are motivated to try to do so and potentially put themselves at risk. They will have a discussion with St Kilda about their concussion protocols.

On Monday, St Kilda announced they had delisted McCartin, who has suffered eight concussions throughout his career, in a mutual decision aimed at allowing the 23-year-old to focus on his recovery.

Paddy McCartin hopes to be back playing in 2021.Credit: Jason South

McCartin likened his injury to that of a car crash victim, saying he had been told the problems he was experiencing were cumulative and that the neural pathways in his brain had to be re-trained.

He told SEN radio on Tuesday that he had deliberately fudged pre-season concussion baseline tests so as to be allowed to play later in the season.

Players are tested during the pre-season to establish a baseline against which they can be measured during matches if they have suffered a suspected concussion.

While he said the AFL had improved its handling of concussion issues, he said he would be surprised if he was the only player to have tried to exploit a loophole in testing.

"I think the AFL has done a good job in improving testing ... obviously every time someone sort of gets slightly concussed ... they're really thorough ... But I think some of the stuff that we do earlier in the season, baseline testing, these computer things and stuff ... you can bludge your way through it if you want to," he said.

"It's your baseline, right, it's what you are at the start of the season, when you're fine. And I've done this before as well, because I've had so many concussions, and especially early in my career, [I was] sort of worried about missing games, because I was worried about what people will think and all that sort of crap.

"I've done the testing worse on purpose, so that if I did my baseline again, I'm starting from a worse spot than I would before … I didn't try as hard."

A St Kilda spokesperson said a poor baseline test result would not necessarily have had the effect McCartin was hoping for in trying to con the doctors.

He said base-line testing was only one of a number of measures used by doctors to assess a player following a head knock or concussion.

"The presentation of the player, their daily interaction with club doctors and other staff, along with their response to several levels of testing and exercise, are all used to identify their capacity for training and potential return to playing," the spokesperson said.

McCartin said he doubted he was the only player who had tried to try to trick the testers.

"If I was doing it, then probably others would too. Maybe I was the only one, but probably not," he said.

The 2014 No.1 draft pick suffered his most recent concussion in the pre-season for the 2019 campaign and has not featured at any level of football since. He will sit out the 2020 season, but remains optimistic that he can return to full health and play at the highest level again, after receiving positive news from recent test results.

"There were a lot of times where I was like 'stuff this, I can't go through this again because it's been so difficult'," he said.

"But when I went in there on Friday [to get test results] they gave me the confidence that it can correct itself."

The Saints haven't closed the door on McCartin returning to their list for the 2021 season and that appears to be his preferred option, although he will have the option of joining another club as a delisted free agent.

"They've been great ... They haven't been through anything like this before either," McCartin said of St Kilda.

"All going to plan, [I'll] potentially get back on a list next year."

With AAP