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There has been a lot to talk about following the conclusion of the Lions series, so much so that one aspect of the last Test is danger of being overlooked.
When George Smith clashed heads with Lions hooker Richard Hibbard, he went down instantly.
Referee Romain Poite was so concerned at what he saw, he called a halt to the game at the earliest opportunity.
Commentators on radio and television, to a man, expected it to be the end of the match for Smith.
Less than 10 minutes later, the Wallaby flanker returned to the pitch to and continued playing.
He was able to do so because he had passed a pitch-side concussion assessment (PSCA), which is a test devised by a team of IRB medical officers.
If anyone wonders just how reliable such a test can really be, rest assured, you aren’t alone.
Barry O’Driscoll (Brian’s uncle) is a former international who held positions on several IRB committees until last summer.
He resigned in protest at the introduction of the new protocols, believing they trivialise concussion.
There’s a good account of O’Driscoll’s views in an article which appeared in The Scotsman earlier this year.
Here’s an excerpt:
“The same player who 18 months ago was given a minimum of seven days recovery time is now given five minutes.
“There is no test that you can do in five minutes that will show that a player is not concussed. It is accepted the world over.
“We have all seen players who have appeared fine five minutes after a concussive injury then vomiting later in the night.
“To have this as acceptable in rugby, what kind of message are we sending out?
“If a boxer cannot defend himself after ten seconds he has to have a brain scan before he comes back.
“And we’re not talking ten seconds for a rugby player, we’re talking maybe a minute that these guys are not sure what’s going on.
“They don’t have to have a brain scan, they have to have five minutes where they have to stand up straight without falling over four times, they have a basic memory test – ‘What’s the score? Who are you playing against? Which half did it happen in? And do you have any symptoms?’
“These questions should serve as a landmark for when you examine them six hours later to see if they’re getting worse or if they’re bleeding into their brain.
“That’s why you ask them, not to see if they can go back on. They are already concussed at that point.”
In North America the NFL and NHL are facing damaging lawsuits which accuse them of failing to put in adequate safeguards to protect players from serious head injuries.
Rugby is in perhaps in danger of suffering a similar fate.
The fact the IRB has a concussion protocol is evidence that it recognises the nature of the problem.
When a player can be cleared to play within minutes of suffering a significant head trauma, it does raise questions the tests are fit for purpose.
More specifically, whether a court would regard the test as an adequate way to ensure player welfare.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.