St George Illawarra forward Josh Kerr has declared he's prepared to "die for rugby league" amid growing debate over the long-term impact of head injuries.
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Speaking before Saturday's game against the Cowboys, the 25-year-old outlined the life-changing opportunities the sport has provided him in recent years.
Kerr was a member of Queensland's series-winning State of Origin squad, while he also signed a lucrative contract with the Dragons last season.
Unlike many stars of yesteryear, the current crop of players have been educated about the dangers of concussions, resulting in a significant increase in the awareness of the long-term impact of head knocks.
That has left Kerr to weigh up the benefits against the costs of an NRL career, the Queenslander ultimately deciding the risk is one worth taking.
"It's such a privilege and an honour to play," Kerr said. "I grew up watching on TV and knew I wanted to do it.
"To be honest, and I know it might sound silly or a bit naive by saying this, I'd die for rugby league because the opportunity you get, the people you meet, the places you go, the money you get paid, you can't do this forever.
"You've got to give it everything, this opportunity doesn't come around twice in a lifetime."
Kerr's comments come as the debate surrounding concussions took centre stage this week.
James Graham spoke on Tuesday of his attitude towards head knocks throughout his career.
Dragons fullback Matt Dufty was allowed to return to the field on Sunday after a brutal swinging arm from Jesse Ramien, the Sharks centre handed a three-game suspension for the incident.
While such incidents generate plenty of attention, St George Illawarra coach Anthony Griffin said accidental collisions are of greater concern for the code.
"Our game at the moment is as clean and as vanilla as it's ever been as far as foul play," Griffin said. "The collisions are the problem. The head-on-head collisions, innocent collisions in just trying to execute your technique in tackles.
"When there's two, three, four guys in a tackle all going flat out at each other in different directions, they're the things we've got to keep an eye on.
"It's trying to work out down the track how we stop these accidental collisions, because they're the ones that are really the problem."
Griffin's point lies central to the NRL's conundrum.
Hits to the head are already illegal, but for as long as rugby league remains a contact sport, it is near impossible to eliminate concussions.
Kerr praised the NRL for doing their best to reduce head injuries, but the forward recognises there's no way to fully protect players in a such a physical game.
"It's scary," Kerr said. "Growing up I used to watch all the old Origin games, the Broncos, how tough they were. But a few of them nowadays, they've got a lot of mental problems.
"It's great to see there's a lot more awareness around the longevity of your life after football, how you want to live those years. There's a difference between being tough and smart.
"The precautions they take around head knocks, whether or not you want to come off, it's for your future and I'm glad where the NRL is in terms of keeping the boys healthy."