GWS Captain Toby Greene has admitted he hid concussion symptoms from the club medical staff during the early part of his career to stay available for the weekend's matches.
Greene's forthright comments come shortly after Collingwood premiership defender Nathan Murphy announced his forced retirement from the AFL due to a bout of concussions.
Murphy joins former Melbourne player Angus Brayshaw in early retirement as he struggled to deal with the effects of ongoing concussion battles.
Greene's admission also follows teammate and All-Australian defender Sam Taylor's sickening concussion in Saturday's clash with St Kilda.
Wishing Sam Taylor all the best after he was stretchered off following a heavy collision ๐งก#AFLGiantsSaints pic.twitter.com/OiMQ9kYYsU
— AFL (@AFL) April 13, 2024
Taylor was taken to Canberra Hospital for assessment and was cleared of any serious injury.
The 24-year-old has entered concussion protocols and will miss Round 6.
In what shocked listeners, Greene revealed he'd choose not to disclose concussion symptoms to GWS doctors.
"Yeah, yeah of course," Greene said on Fox Footy'sย AFL 360.
"No, I wouldn't say 'common'. Less than five (times), less than five.
"Certainly, in my early years (I had) a lot more disregard for (concussion) than I do now, but I wouldn't say it's common practice, no.
"I'm certainly more aware of the effects (and) not reporting or misreporting, we're certainly more aware of that (as players).
โI don't think I've changed anything in my game, to be honest. I got kicked out of the midfield and played in the forward line, that was probably the best thing for it.
โI wouldn't say I've changed my attack on the ball in any way. We understand (concussion is) part of the game and the effects are long-lasting.
โWe're a lot more aware and I'm a lot more aware now as an older player.โ
The Giants will take on the Blues on Saturday at Marvel Stadium.
