Dr Tom Cross
Sport & Exercise Physician
Dr Tom Cross is a highly experienced Sport and Exercise Physician with more than 30 years of dedicated clinical practice. He completed 5 years of specialist postgraduate training and is a Fellow of the Australasian College of Sport & Exercise Physicians (ACSEP). Before specialising, Dr Cross gained valuable broad-based medical experience within the NSW public hospital system and earned a Diploma in Child Health at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.
Across his career, Dr Cross has cared for a wide range of patients - from children and recreational athletes to elite and professional sportspeople, military personnel, and individuals managing musculoskeletal injuries from work or daily life.
He is known for his warm, collaborative approach and a genuine commitment to helping each patient return safely to the activities they love.
Dr Cross now focuses primarily on ACL injury research, and is a principal leader in the development and ongoing research of the Cross Bracing Protocol (CBP). Most of his current clinical and academic work is dedicated to advancing evidence for non-surgical ACL healing.
Dr’s Cross CBP research and patient and practitioner resources is now accessible on his Cross Bracing Protocol website:
Home-CBP - Cross Bracing Protocol
If you have acutely injured your ACL, or would like to consult with Dr Cross regarding your knee issue, please contact us for a consultation via:
The EMBRACE Study – Now Recruiting
Dr Cross invites eligible patients to consider participating in the EMBRACE Study, the first randomised controlled trial comparing:
- Cross Bracing Protocol (CBP): A non-surgical bracing and rehabilitation approach
- ACL Reconstruction Surgery: Early surgery followed by rehabilitation
Eligibility includes:
- Ages 16–40
- Complete ACL tear within the past 19 days
- Willingness to be randomly assigned to either treatment group
Participants receive comprehensive support, including specialist care, 12 months of physiotherapy consultations, and necessary equipment.
Express interest: https://redcap.link/embracestudy
Learn more: www.embracestudy.com.au
What you need to bring to your consultations:
- A valid referral from either a GP (carries a 12 month validity period) or referring Specialist (carries 3-month validity period).
- Having provided a completed registration form for our practice via: Online Registration Form | The Stadium Sports Medicine Clinic | Sydney
- Any relative medical imaging reports or links to imaging related to your injury (including MRI, US, XR, or CT reports).
- Any relative history to your injury including physio or surgical reports.
The Cross Bracing Protocol
Home-CBP - Cross Bracing Protocol
Men's Health Article: BRACE YOURSELF
Healing of Acute ACL Rupture Managed with Cross Bracing Protocol
If you OR your patient has just injured your ACL, please head to Dr Cross’ HealACL Website via the below link:
Legendary knee surgeon Merv Cross passes away
Researchers take a step towards less invasive ACL injury therapy
Time with Swans doc spurring Indigenous student on
Coffee with Cynthia: Dr Tom Cross
Bend the knee: The game-changing procedure for athletes with ACL injuries
Bestellschein fur Zeitschriftenautoren
ACL injuries are skiing's curse- here's what it took me to come back | SnowsBest
For all appointment bookings and
enquiries with Dr Tom Cross please phone their office on (02) 8323 6500.
A valid GP referral is required for all appointments.
His abbreviated CV includes:
- Head Doctor to Cirque du Soleil : 2012-2025
- 2012-2024 Consultant Doctor for Cirque du Soleil performances in Sydney (Luzia, Kurios, Kooza, Totem and Ovo).
- 2021-2024 Assistant Team Doctor Melbourne Storm NRL Team: Sydney games
- 2004-2025 Specialist “Sport and Exercise Medicine” consultant in Sydney
- 2021-2022 Assistant Team Doctor Gold Coast Titans NRL Team: Sydney games
- 2016-2020 Head Doctor to Sydney Swans Football Club
- 2019 Consultant Doctor for NBA in Sydney: USA versus Canada and Australian Boomers.
- 2019 Keynote speaker at the Northern Lights Conference, Scandinavia
- 2016 "NRL Rookie TV series Channel 9" Head Doctor
- 2015 Consultant Doctor to Les Miserables musical performing in Sydney
- 2014-2015 Assistant team Doctor for the Sydney Roosters Rugby League Club
- 2014 Liaison Doctor to Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball in Sydney
- 2012-2015 Queensland State of Origin NRL Assistant Team Doctor
- 2012-2015 Melbourne Storm NRL: Assistant Team Doctor Sydney games
- 2011-2017 Sydney Swans Football Club: Junior Swans Academy Consultant Doctor
- 2008-2011 Canberra Raiders Rugby League: Assistant Team Doctor Sydney games
- 2005 Sydney Swans Football Club: Assistant Team Doctor
- 2004-2017 Medical reviewer British Journal of Sports Medicine
- 2004-2017 Honorary Doctor North Bondi SLSC
- 2004-2016 Australian Rugby Union Wallabies: Medical room doctor: Sydney Test matches
- 2004-2014 NSW Waratahs Rugby Union: Assistant Team Doctor
- 2003-2015 Consultant Sports Medicine Doctor to the Royal Australian Navy Clearance Divers at HMS Penguin.
- 2002-2003 Consulting in Sports Medicine, Canberra
- 2001-2003 Consultant in Sports medicine to Royal Military College, Duntroon, ACT
- 2001 Australian Institute of Sport, ACT, Fellowship in Sports Medicine
- 2000 Volunteer Sports Doctor (Sydney Olympics and Paralympics)
- 1998-2000 Sydney Swans Football Club: Assistant Team Doctor
- 1997-2000 Sports Medicine Registrar consulting in Sydney
- 1997 Team Doctor for Manly Rugby League Juniors
Other sports medicine coverage includes:
Sydney FC Men's Soccer, Brisbane Roar Woman's Football Club, San Diego Chargers NFL, Australian Men's Water Polo Team tour of Europe, Australian Swimming Championships Team Doctor, NSW Institute of Sport Accredited Medical service provider, Harvard College American Football team, The Kings School Rugby, The Shore school Rugby, Wests Tigers rugby league, NZ Warriors rugby league, ACT Brumbies Rugby, Sydney Kings Basketball, Canberra Cannons Basketball, World transplant games, Australian Multi-disability games, Locum Doctor in Alice Springs for RFDS.
Dr Tom Cross caring for Sydney Swans premiership winning (season 2012) player, Alex Johnson, just after Alex tragically sustained a season ending knee injury.
Podcasts
Dr Cross has several journal publications
Publications
- Physiological and psychological responses to coaching: An exploratory case report from professional Australian rules football
- MRI deep learning models for assisted diagnosis of knee pathologies: a systematic review
- Dr Cross recently had a feature in Citro Travel's magazine with their exclusive on Japan. Here's a link to the Citro magazine - please see page 39 for your ski tips from Dr Cross!
- Bend the Knee: The game-changing procedure for athletes with ACL injuries
- Role of Club Doctors in the Mental Health management of AFL players
- Acute Quadriceps Muscle Strain Injuries
- Accuracy of MRI predicting Hamstring Injury
- Silent Patella Fracture after ACL reconstruction
- Outcome of Fabella excision for Elite Athlete
- Exercise as Medicine
- Food as Medicine
- Distal avulsion of the Semitendinosus Tendon
- The Franklin-Naismith Lesion
- Headache in Athletes
- Rotator cuff problems in sport
- Exposure to Diagnostic Ionizing Radiation in Sports Medicine
- Exercise-associated Muscle Cramps
- Diagnostic imaging: radiation exposure and safety considerations
- Medical considerations in Child Athletes
- Musculoskeletal considerations in children
- Sports Injuries in Children
- Medial meniscal cyst as a cause of painful erosion of the tibial plateau
Sports Medicine Lectures
A Classification of Sporting Injuries
Acute Quadriceps Muscle Strains - MRI features and prognosis
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