IAN Roberts has already been a pioneer in rugby league as the first professional to come out as gay — but while that was a daunting journey, news that he’s got irreversible brain damage as the result of his career has set the wheels in motion for another series of firsts.

In a report published by bbc.com, former Test star Roberts, 52, reveals he has scarring on the brain, which was discovered as a result of a study he took part in alongside 24 other former players.

“To be told you have brain damage is really hard to hear,” Roberts told the BBC.

“I was fully aware there was something wrong with me, but to be told I had scarring on the brain was surprising. It’s irreversible damage.”

Ian Roberts pictured in 2016 in a promotional shoot for an acting gig.

The study was published last week and found repeated head knocks over the course of a career had left players with long-term impairments.

“Players need to be aware so they can make their own, informed decision,” Roberts said.

“They need to know the consequences of repetitive concussions, because there’s a price to pay.”

Roberts played over 200 club games for South Sydney, Wigan, Manly and North Queensland over the course of a great career between 1986 and 1998.

He played nine State of Origin games for NSW and 13 Tests for Australia.

The BBC report also quotes the NRL, saying it was “aware of the study” and “takes concussion seriously and is continuing to adopt international best practice in concussion management”.

The NRL has taken significant steps to beef-up its concussion protocol over the last five years to the point where players who suffer two or more concussions in a season are being banned from the field until they are cleared to play by an independent brain specialist.

Ian Roberts discusses the Super League war with media in the mid-90s. Sport / Rugby League / Head

Concussions have become a huge talking point in professional sport in the wake of a study of former NFL players that revealed widespread cases of the debilitating brain disease Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy or CTE.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph last year, NRL chief medical officer Dr Paul Bloomfield said: “Once players reach certain criteria in terms of concussions or head injuries, they enter our advanced care protocols.

“Part of that process will see the club and the player seek specific assessment from a head injury specialist, to give the player and the club further specialised medical advice in terms of when the player can safely return to play.

“These protocols are based on world’s best practice.

“While it is part of the rules, it’s important to note that our aim is to help the club through this process and to provide support to the clinical assessment and management of the club doctor, who remains the primary treating physician of his or her player.”

Roberts running the ball as in his Manly days.

Roberts told the BBC he agreed to take part in the study that identified his brain scarring to find out if his symptoms were a direct result of playing rugby league.

“I’ve had some complications with my mental health since retiring from rugby league,” Roberts said.

“My first major concussion was in my early teens, and when I turned professional I was knocked unconscious on 14 separate occasions.

“In the last five years I’ve noticed my recollection of things has slowed down and my memory isn’t as sharp as it was. I first realised it at rehearsals for plays because my ability to learn lines has deteriorated. I’m just not as sharp as I was in the past.”