They've shared some of the greatest moments of their rugby careers but Ryan Crotty and Ben Smith have also experienced similar obstacles.
The pair have overcome a number of head knocks during their playing days.
The latest for Crotty was just over two weeks ago, but the midfielder was cleared yesterday to return to the field for the first All Blacks Test against France.
“Fresh and excited is probably the two words I'd use to describe how I'm feeling,” he said.
Crotty admits his multiple experiences with concussion have made him more diligent.
“At the start of each season, I'll get testing done to make sure I'm at the same point each season for example” he said.
Smith's had his fair share of knocks as well, learning that being honest about the situation leads to the best recovery.
“The big thing is a lot of them are different.” He said.
“For me, I had probably a few things that actually led to vertigo and things like that whereas you get different symptoms and you've just got to listen to your body and what it's doing and probably just be honest with the docs.”
While Smith revealed in a recent documentary he briefly contemplated retirement, Crotty is comfortable with his health – but he did warn he wouldn’t hesitate to change that outlook.
“But if I wasn't to bounce back from one as quick as I tend to then maybe you'd think [about retiring]. But that's never something I've thought about.
And it's not just the players continuously learning, says All Blacks assistant coach Ian Foster.
“It's just another type of rehab and you know part of the education has been us coaches understanding that,” he said.
“Making sure that that our expectations match up what the medical ones are and I think the game as a whole is doing a pretty good job of that.”
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