What really happens when rugby injuries walk through the doors of A&E?

In this powerful episode of the @ForceField Podcast, Joanna Fletcher sits down with Consultant Paediatrician Dr Tina Newton from Birmingham Children's Hospital to connect two worlds that don’t often speak to each other: the emergency department and the rugby pitch.

From broken bones to concussions, Dr Newton shares what she sees day in, day out in A&E… and what it reveals about how we prepare (or don’t prepare) young athletes for contact sport.

But this isn’t just about injury.

It is about something deeper.

👉 Why young players feel invincible—and why that can be dangerous

👉 Why concussion is still misunderstood

👉 Why physical fitness alone isn’t enough

👉 And why the brain—not just the body—needs to be trained for rugby

Together, we explore a shift that is starting to happen in sport from focusing purely on power and performance… to recognising the missing piece: protection.

You will hear real stories, honest reflections, and practical insights on:

• Injury prevention in youth rugby
• Concussion awareness and brain health
• The role of mental readiness and focus
• Why breath and nervous system regulation matter on the pitch
• How coaches, parents, and players can work together to reduce injury risk

This conversation is for:

🏉 Players who want to perform better and stay injury-free

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Parents who feel quietly anxious about rugby

🏫 Coaches looking to build safer, smarter training environments

💡 Anyone interested in the future of sport and athlete wellbeing

Because rugby isn’t going away.

But how we prepare for it… can and should change.

🎧 Listen now and be part of the shift.

What if rugby didn’t have to choose between performance and protection?

In this opening episode of the @ForceField Podcast, I introduce a different kind of conversation, one that sits in the space between two ways we often talk about injury in sport. Sometimes not enough, and sometimes in a way that creates concern.

Rugby is a game that shapes people. It builds resilience, connection, identity. But alongside the pride and passion, there is often something unspoken. Those moments on the touchline, the quiet concerns, the injuries that don’t always make it back into the way we train and prepare.

This podcast is about changing that.

Not by criticising the game.

Not by softening it.

But by asking a better question:

👉 How do we build athletes who are not only powerful but protected?

In this first series "Where Performance Meets Protection", we explore:

• Injury prevention in rugby (from grassroots to elite)
• Concussion awareness and brain health
• The role of strength, mobility, and recovery in performance
• Mental readiness, focus, and the nervous system in contact sport
• How coaches, parents, and players can work together to reduce risk

You will hear from people across the rugby ecosystem—players, coaches, parents, medics, and high performers—sharing honest, practical insights grounded in both experience and evidence.

Because performance and protection are not opposites. They are partners.

And when we start to see them that way, everything changes.

This is more than a podcast. It is a shift in how we think about rugby, youth sport, and long-term athlete development.

🎧 If you care about safer rugby, better performance, youth athlete wellbeing or the future of the game …you are in the right place.

👇 Subscribe and be part of the conversation.