I started playing rugby at the age of 4 for my local club, Towcestrians RFC and was that rugby mad kid that loved all and everything about the game. The camaraderie, the culture, the physicality of it, going to battle with your mates, the beer afterwards, everything. And I count myself immensely fortunate that I was able to fulfil a childhood dream and turn out for the team I supported for as long as I could remember, and who my Dad also played for, Northampton Saints. My foray into professional rugby didn't last long though, just two years, as I fell foul to the bulk up at all costs mentality that was so pervasive in the late noughties. It led to all sorts of soft tissue issues, including patella tendonitis, that I still battle with to this day, as well as stress fractures in both feet, at the same time! Rocking two moon boots for 3 months aged 20 does nothing for the street cred, I can tell you!

For a long time I was resentful of my experience of pro sport. I felt like I was well and truly thrown on the scrap heap by the Saints and treated really poorly, which I was, but that's a story for another day.

With everything we now know about concussion and the cumulative effects of repetitive head knocks, I now count myself fortunate and that I potentially dodged a bit of a bullet. My nickname at the Saints was Bamm-Bamm, of Flintstones fame. Despite being small in stature, I was that super annoying, overly keen, youngster who used to run around like a mad man, putting his head where it hurt and generally doing everything at 110%. Reflecting on what we're now seeing with former pros being diagnosed with neurodegenerative diseases, I would absolutely have been a prime candidate had my career lasted longer, and who knows, I might well still be affected. The unknown is scary and I know a lot of my contemporaries are worried about what the future might hold for them.

I've been incredibly saddened to follow the stories of Steve Thompson and Alix Popham, to name just two. There are hundreds. They had no idea what they were being exposed to, and nor did I. I have tremendous sympathy for all affected and can't imagine what a diagnosis of early onset dementia in your early 40s must feel like. It must be absolutely devastating and it would only be natural to be angry, to point fingers, and to feel sorry for yourself and the hand you've been dealt, but I didn't get an ounce of that when I recently met Alix.

Alix has turned his devastating diagnosis into a force for good through the charity he founded with his wife Melanie and Dr Sally Tucker, Head for Change. The Charity does sterling work to support former pro rugby players and footballers who are living with the reality of a neurodegenerative disease. They're lobbying for change at the top levels of sport and the government, and they're also providing crucial advice to sufferers, carers and family members that are afflicted.

Like Alex, and so many others that have been affected, I still love the game and still believe it is a tremendous force for good in schools, the community as well as professionally. We just need leadership to protect players at all levels and that's been sorely lacking, for various reasons. Head for Change is doing all it can but like all other charities, it's resource constrained, so any funds you can spare would be greatly appreciated.

From a personal standpoint, this is a problem I'm working on day and night through my startup, Luca Health, that supports schools and neurodegenerative disease is also in my family, with my Dad receiving a Parkinson's diagnosis in 2011. He has an identical twin, who didn't play nearly as much rugby, and doesn't have Parkinson's - it makes you think. There's so much we don't know and that's why we need to raise money to fund much needed research. So there we are, I'm running 26.2 miles in Boston, a city that's the global leader for brain health research and I'd be incredibly grateful for anything that you might be able to give.

Donating £2.62 is less than the cost of a cup of coffee, but if you have the means, £26.2 would be incredible to help support those affected, and to help us find a way to make sport safer, for all.

P.S. Thought I'd post a photo of Bamm-Bamm 🤦‍♂️

Very best wishes,

Nick Greenhalgh