‘I'm not thinking about retirement': Victor Radley sets the record straight on concussion fears
Radley came off late against the Sharks with a shoulder concern but is adamant it's not something to worry about.
'It's all good. It's just shoulder issues I've had previously that I was working through,' he said.
'I've been managing it for the past few years. It's not like I need surgery, but you've just got to keep your strength up. It's my right shoulder that I've had issues with, but this time it was my left. It's no problem at all.
'It happened pretty early in the first half, but I came off and let myself cool down and didn't quite keep it as warm as I should have. It was a little bit dead on me, but it's no problem.'
The Cronulla game was his second one back after he missed a month of footy following his latest head knock.
The Roosters lock was forced from the field against the Knights in round 15 and did not return, with data showing he's has seven concussion or failed head injury assessments in the past four seasons.
The club has always looked after its players when it comes to brain health which is why they were in no rush to bring him back, but Radley insists he's fine.
Victor Radley has failed his HIA & won’t return - will enter the NRL’s concussion protocols with associated 11 day stand down.
Radley has had 7 concussions/failed HIA’s in the past 4 seasons. He’s also undergone 5 HIA’s this year and failed 2 of them. Hope he’s OK. pic.twitter.com/s13kCmA8n3
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) June 14, 2025
'The head is really good,' he said.
'I've been working really hard on some little things that the doctors and the professors gave me. But other than that, I haven't had one issue.
'Even since then, I've had minor knocks and not one symptom (as a result). I've been completely fine so I'm really positive.
'I've learnt some lessons over the past 12 months, especially at the start of the year with how to deal with it all.
'Everyone has got their opinions which is a good thing because a lot of people will come up to me and make sure that I'm all right.
'It's all coming from a good place, but it can overwhelm me a little bit when every single person you speak with says 'mate, make sure you look after yourself'.
'I see the best in the business with this stuff and they fill me with positivity. That's all that matters to me – to only care about the opinions of people who know what they're talking about. Everyone else is to just keep them happy.'
Retirement has been suggested by some people not in his inner circle, and while it's not something he's considering right now, he says he has things in place to ensure he's ready to look after his young family when he eventually hangs up the boots.
'No one ever really comes up to me and says 'you should retire',' he said.
'Maybe there's some stuff in the media, but I just brush that. It's just the people who come up to me and say 'mate, look after yourself. You've got a family'. I think I do know that I've got a family.
'It's all coming from such a good place that I thank them and put it to the backburner.
'I haven't thought about retiring, but I'm not scared too, either. I'm a carpenter and a builder by trade. I'm not thinking about retirement, but it's not because I'm worried about it. It's not my time now.'
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an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Walters embraces 'lifetime' chance to coach Australia
Kevin Walters won a World Cup final for Australia with a famous pass as a player and now is "proud" he gets to coach the Kangaroos on the three-Test tour of England. Walters, 57, replaces new Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga in the role on a 12-month contract and said he had put aspirations to coach in the NRL again on hold in 2026. "Certainly. At the moment, my focus is the Kangaroos," Walters said. "I want to do a great job there with the Ashes series. It's a big job. "It's a 12-month contract so it's the opportune time for me to come in and get some hard work done and then prepare these guys for what will be a very tough series. "When that phone call came to ask if I would be interested in coaching the Kangaroos, the hairs on the back of my neck really stood up and bristled. "As a kid, you dream about ... playing for the Kangaroos, which I was fortunate enough to achieve, and now to be given the opportunity to coach them, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Walters coached Queensland to two State of Origin series wins out of four and was at the helm of Brisbane when they reached the 2023 grand final before being sacked at the end of the following year. If successful on the Ashes tour there is a strong chance he would be retained for next year's World Cup to be hosted in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Walters played 12 Tests for Australia and was a hero of the 1992 World Cup final at Wembley Stadium. The Kangaroos were trailing 6-4 when Walters came off the bench to throw a classic "out ball" to his Brisbane teammate Steve Renouf who scored the match winner in 10-6 win. Former NSW coach Brad Fittler turned down the opportunity to replace Meninga while former Kangaroos coach and current South Sydney mentor Wayne Bennett was ruled out of contention by the Commission due to his club responsibilities. Former Australia captain Cameron Smith told 100% Footy on Monday night that despite being interested in the coaching role, he was not given the opportunity to present his case. He did receive notification from ARLC chairman Peter V'landys that Walters had got the job. "He gave me a phone call to let me know the decision was made to go with Kev and that was about it," Smith said. "I'm happy with that decision, I respect that decision. "If I had an opportunity to put my case forward I would've but the decision was made by the game's hierarchy to go with Kevvie and I think it's a great appointment." During the conversation Smith said V'landys spoke about a possible assistant role. "That could be something to look at but I've not had any further discussions with Peter or Andrew Abdo or anyone in the NRL about that," he said. Walters said a possible role for Smith on the coaching staff was "something that we'll have to have a look at". "I'm not sure of Cameron's position at the moment and what he wants to do but he's been a great leader for the Kangaroos and I have worked with Smithy as a captain-coach relationship with the Queensland team for a few years," Walters said. "We've got a good relationship. I'll get my feet under the desk first. There's a lot of decisions to be made around staff. Certainly, we'll look at that in the next couple of days." Kevin Walters won a World Cup final for Australia with a famous pass as a player and now is "proud" he gets to coach the Kangaroos on the three-Test tour of England. Walters, 57, replaces new Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga in the role on a 12-month contract and said he had put aspirations to coach in the NRL again on hold in 2026. "Certainly. At the moment, my focus is the Kangaroos," Walters said. "I want to do a great job there with the Ashes series. It's a big job. "It's a 12-month contract so it's the opportune time for me to come in and get some hard work done and then prepare these guys for what will be a very tough series. "When that phone call came to ask if I would be interested in coaching the Kangaroos, the hairs on the back of my neck really stood up and bristled. "As a kid, you dream about ... playing for the Kangaroos, which I was fortunate enough to achieve, and now to be given the opportunity to coach them, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Walters coached Queensland to two State of Origin series wins out of four and was at the helm of Brisbane when they reached the 2023 grand final before being sacked at the end of the following year. If successful on the Ashes tour there is a strong chance he would be retained for next year's World Cup to be hosted in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Walters played 12 Tests for Australia and was a hero of the 1992 World Cup final at Wembley Stadium. The Kangaroos were trailing 6-4 when Walters came off the bench to throw a classic "out ball" to his Brisbane teammate Steve Renouf who scored the match winner in 10-6 win. Former NSW coach Brad Fittler turned down the opportunity to replace Meninga while former Kangaroos coach and current South Sydney mentor Wayne Bennett was ruled out of contention by the Commission due to his club responsibilities. Former Australia captain Cameron Smith told 100% Footy on Monday night that despite being interested in the coaching role, he was not given the opportunity to present his case. He did receive notification from ARLC chairman Peter V'landys that Walters had got the job. "He gave me a phone call to let me know the decision was made to go with Kev and that was about it," Smith said. "I'm happy with that decision, I respect that decision. "If I had an opportunity to put my case forward I would've but the decision was made by the game's hierarchy to go with Kevvie and I think it's a great appointment." During the conversation Smith said V'landys spoke about a possible assistant role. "That could be something to look at but I've not had any further discussions with Peter or Andrew Abdo or anyone in the NRL about that," he said. Walters said a possible role for Smith on the coaching staff was "something that we'll have to have a look at". "I'm not sure of Cameron's position at the moment and what he wants to do but he's been a great leader for the Kangaroos and I have worked with Smithy as a captain-coach relationship with the Queensland team for a few years," Walters said. "We've got a good relationship. I'll get my feet under the desk first. There's a lot of decisions to be made around staff. Certainly, we'll look at that in the next couple of days." Kevin Walters won a World Cup final for Australia with a famous pass as a player and now is "proud" he gets to coach the Kangaroos on the three-Test tour of England. Walters, 57, replaces new Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga in the role on a 12-month contract and said he had put aspirations to coach in the NRL again on hold in 2026. "Certainly. At the moment, my focus is the Kangaroos," Walters said. "I want to do a great job there with the Ashes series. It's a big job. "It's a 12-month contract so it's the opportune time for me to come in and get some hard work done and then prepare these guys for what will be a very tough series. "When that phone call came to ask if I would be interested in coaching the Kangaroos, the hairs on the back of my neck really stood up and bristled. "As a kid, you dream about ... playing for the Kangaroos, which I was fortunate enough to achieve, and now to be given the opportunity to coach them, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Walters coached Queensland to two State of Origin series wins out of four and was at the helm of Brisbane when they reached the 2023 grand final before being sacked at the end of the following year. If successful on the Ashes tour there is a strong chance he would be retained for next year's World Cup to be hosted in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Walters played 12 Tests for Australia and was a hero of the 1992 World Cup final at Wembley Stadium. The Kangaroos were trailing 6-4 when Walters came off the bench to throw a classic "out ball" to his Brisbane teammate Steve Renouf who scored the match winner in 10-6 win. Former NSW coach Brad Fittler turned down the opportunity to replace Meninga while former Kangaroos coach and current South Sydney mentor Wayne Bennett was ruled out of contention by the Commission due to his club responsibilities. Former Australia captain Cameron Smith told 100% Footy on Monday night that despite being interested in the coaching role, he was not given the opportunity to present his case. He did receive notification from ARLC chairman Peter V'landys that Walters had got the job. "He gave me a phone call to let me know the decision was made to go with Kev and that was about it," Smith said. "I'm happy with that decision, I respect that decision. "If I had an opportunity to put my case forward I would've but the decision was made by the game's hierarchy to go with Kevvie and I think it's a great appointment." During the conversation Smith said V'landys spoke about a possible assistant role. "That could be something to look at but I've not had any further discussions with Peter or Andrew Abdo or anyone in the NRL about that," he said. Walters said a possible role for Smith on the coaching staff was "something that we'll have to have a look at". "I'm not sure of Cameron's position at the moment and what he wants to do but he's been a great leader for the Kangaroos and I have worked with Smithy as a captain-coach relationship with the Queensland team for a few years," Walters said. "We've got a good relationship. I'll get my feet under the desk first. There's a lot of decisions to be made around staff. Certainly, we'll look at that in the next couple of days."

News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
AFL star Steven May learns his fate for divisive Carlton act
Steven May has learned his fate for his hit on Carlton forward Francis Evans that fiercely divided the AFL fraternity and led to a hugely drawn out deliberation. May's act left 23-year-old Evans bloodied with a broken nose and a displaced tooth, graded by the Match Review Officer as careless conduct, severe impact and high contact. Referred directly to the Tribunal, the AFL was seeking a three-match ban for the incident and after taking well over an hour to make a call, the charge was upheld and that is the suspension he received. FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every match of every round in the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE in 4K, with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1. The Demons entered a not guilty plea to the rough conduct charge and wanted the case thrown out, listing nine reasons for that stance, including May's height, the unexpected bounce of the ball and the fact he didn't jump from the ground. They argued May's contact was not unreasonable as he accelerated towards a footy that was in dispute and the defender believed he would take possession first. The AFL argued 33-year-old May had breached his duty of care, however, and they got their way, with May to serve three matches on the sideline. Fox Footy's David Zita, who was at the hearing, reported May telling the Tribunal: 'It was sort of skimming across the surface, so I definitely thought it was my ball, given how the previous couple of bounces went. 'I was surprised Evans got to the ball first and did not try to bump him, maintaining the original line. 'I attempted to slow down, but it was too late. 'I just can't believe I didn't take possession. 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Many fans took the same side as Boak, but there was still a cross section of opinions on social media. One wrote on X: 'Should be nothing, stop encouraging the continued destruction of the game.' Another tweeted: 'That is 1000% a footy action, contesting the football at all times. It's not even a bump.' A third offered: 'There is no duty of care towards the player and May contacts the head.' A fourth wrote: 'S**t that's terrible, should be 5 weeks.' In the lead-up to the hearing, journalist Jon Ralph told Fox Footy's Midweek Tackle his intel regarding Melbourne's likely defence. 'They (the Demons) are convinced that Steven May will get off and they think that the Alex Pearce case is the key,' he said. 'Melbourne believes the fact that it was a marking contest for Alex Pearce, rather than a groundball, actually helps them. Because with Pearce, the ball was in the air, it wasn't moving (bouncing unpredictably) there. 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News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Young Swans defender Riak Andrew cops a huge ban for using a homophobic slur
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