Concussion and head injuries are a big topic of conversation in the world of sport at the moment. With the Will Smith movie "Concussion" bringing the issue to the masses, sports have been trying to increase awareness of head injuries and how to prevent second impact syndrome.
A big challenge facing authories and medics is that the culture that cheers players who try to play through injuries, especially head injuries.
The scariest aspect to this is when young players see professionals playing on after taking head knocks, and trying to do the same when it happens to them.
A horrifying incident happened in Thursday's Leinster Schools senior cup quarter-final between Roscrea and Gonzaga when a schools player went down with a head injury. Bizarrely, after the referee correctly informed the Gonzaga medics that the player wasn't allowed to play on the medic proceeded to shout at the referee for at least a minute:
Player in Blue scrum cap goes down.
Ref goes to check
Informs medics "there's no HIA." and then.... pic.twitter.com/9z1jlHtqEL— The Champ Champs (@GifsRugbyNStuff) February 11, 2016
The man was trying to conduct a head injury assessment or a HIA that you hear take place in the professional game. But under World Rugby rules, there is no HIA allowed at underage rugby, and the referee was right to err on the side of caution in ordering the player off the field:
The referee deserves immense credit for how he handled the situation, and making the correct decision in the first place.
Today's Irish Times reports that the medic is actually a plastic surgeon. Understandably, those watching were upset by what they saw:
Disappointing to see a referee had to overrule a medic regarding a schools rugby player & head injury. There should be no risk taken, ever.
— Killian Byrne (@killianbyrne) February 12, 2016
Leinster Rugby have acted on the incident, releasing a statement backing the referee, and confirming that they will be investigating the incident:
The referee is the ultimate arbiter of all games played at all levels and it is with he/she that any final decision rests with regard to on-field activity and this includes the removal of a player for medical reasons as detailed in IRB Law 3.9.
Leinster Rugby would also like to direct all of those involved with the game of rugby in Leinster to the following link which outlines clearly and concisely the protocols should a concussion be suspected at training or during a match at any level of the domestic game.
In summary, Leinster Rugby would ask all those involved in the domestic game to inform themselves of their responsibilities to STOP - INFORM - REST - RETURN and if a player has any one of the signs or symptoms of concussion he/she should be removed from the field of play and not allowed to return.
It wasn't the only head injury incident in the same game, with Conor Dempsey's son taking himself off because of a head injury after he was cleared:
Proud of my son for deciding he was not well enough to continue playing 5 mins after @peterrobinson86 @LeinsterBranch @IRFUSaferugby #lssc >
— Conor Dempsey 🕊️🇺🇦🇮🇪🕊 (@Conor_Dempsey) February 11, 2016
It's the second time in a year that a head injury has marred a schools cup game, the first was when Clongowes hooker John Molony appeared to be concussed in this video from the Irish Times.
Remember, when in doubt, sit it out.
