Billy Guyton Explained

Billy Guyton
Birth Name:Billy-John Guyton
Birth Date:1990 3, df=yes
Birth Place:Timaru, New Zealand
Death Place:Nelson, New Zealand
Height:1.86 m
Weight:900NaN0
Ru Position:Halfback
First five-eighth
Repteam1:Māori All Blacks
Repyears1:2016
Repcaps1:0
Reppoints1:0
Super1:Hurricanes
Super2:Crusaders
Superyears1:2014
Superyears2:2015
Superyears3:2016−2017
Superapps1:1
Superapps2:1
Superapps3:24
Superpoints1:0
Superpoints2:0
Superpoints3:10
Super14update:20 July 2016
Province1:North Otago
Province2:Tasman
Provinceyears1:2010–2012
Provinceyears2:2013–2017
Provinceapps1:29
Provinceapps2:52
Provincepoints1:89
Provincepoints2:90
Ru Provinceupdate:23 September 2018
School:Shirley Boys' High School
Nelson College

Billy-John Guyton (17 March 1990 – 15 May 2023) was a New Zealand rugby union player. He played at halfback for provincial side Tasman.[1] Guyton spent the previous three years playing for North Otago in the Heartland championship, making 29 appearances for the province. He then moved north to sign with the Tasman Mako ahead of 2013 season's ITM Cup.

Tasman

2013 saw Guyton establish himself as the starting halfback for Tasman as they went on to have a successful season and win the champion division in the ITM Cup, with a one-point win over Hawke's Bay 26–25. This saw Tasman Mako promoted to the Premiership Division of the ITM Cup.

Super Rugby

A strong season for the Tasman Mako saw Guyton sign with the Hurricanes for the 2014 super rugby season.

The 2014 super rugby season saw Guyton get very little game time for the Hurricanes. This saw Guyton initially released for the 2015 season, but a season-ending injury to Willi Heinz saw the Crusaders sign him as a replacement for the remainder of the 2015 super rugby season.[2]

After another season of little action as a member of the Crusaders, Guyton signed a contract with the,[3] his 3rd super rugby team in as many years.

Māori All Blacks

In October 2016 Guyton, who affiliated with the Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Pikiao, and Ngāti Raukawa iwi, was named in the Māori All Blacks team for their end-of-year tour to the Northern Hemisphere.[4]

Guyton also played for the New Zealand Heartland XV at fullback and wing.

Retirement and death

Guyton announced his retirement from playing rugby in October 2018, aged 28, after repeated concussions suffered in official matches had left him with symptoms of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).[5] [6]

He died in Nelson on 15 May 2023, at the age of 33.[7] Subsequent reports in New Zealand media said Guyton was suspected to have died by suicide.[8]

Guyton's family decided to donate his brain to the Neurological Foundation Human Brain Bank at the University of Auckland; following post-mortem analyses conducted in New Zealand and Australia, he was diagnosed with stage 2 CTE in March 2024, becoming the first New Zealand-based player to be officially diagnosed with the disease. The pathologist's report also found that Guyton's brain presented trauma-induced cavum septum pellucidum, as well as age-related tau deposits.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Billy Guyton Tasman Profile . 12 November 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121226084838/http://www.makos.co.nz/theteam.aspx . 26 December 2012.
  2. Web site: Will Heinz's season-ending injury opens door for Billy Guyton at the Crusaders.
  3. Web site: Injured All Blacks key to new-look Blues squad for Super Rugby 2016.
  4. News: Six new caps named in Maori All Blacks . 25 October 2016 . RNZ News . 25 October 2016.
  5. Web site: Dine . Jonty . 4 October 2018 . Head knocks force Tasman Mako Billy Guyton to retire . 16 March 2024 . Nelson Weekly . en-NZ.
  6. Web site: RNZ . Radio New Zealand . 14 March 2024 . Brain injury from head knocks discovered in late Blues halfback . 16 March 2024 . . en-NZ.
  7. News: 15 May 2023 . Former Blues and Tasman Mako halfback Billy Guyton dies, aged 33 . 15 May 2023 . . Stuff.
  8. News: Aylwin . Michael . 14 March 2024 . First professional rugby union player confirmed to have died with CTE . 16 March 2024 . . en-GB . 0261-3077.