Rugby League boss Peter V’landys says it’s “pretty obvious” that Blues striker Isaah Yeo “should have left” after suffering a blow to the head during State of Origin I, but the process that allowed him to play it was followed correctly.
Key points:
- The striker of the blues, Isaah Yeo, left the first entrance to party I of the state of origin
- Rugby League Commission chief Peter V’landys says independent doctor followed suit
- V’landys says rugby league is “very serious” about concussion and player well-being
Yeo appeared to be injured in the first tackle of the match on Wednesday night, after being thrown back to the ground after contact with the shoulder of an enraged Josh Papali’i.
At that moment, the Panthers’ block seemed to show signs of concussion, stumbling back into the defensive line, where he received brief support from Tariq Sims, before making the next tackle.
Half of the grenades Cameron Munster, who pointed and shook his opponent to the attention of officials, later said the incident made him feel “sick.”
“It wasn’t rocket science,” he said.
“It could be seen that he was not well.”
Yeo, who said after the game that he was fine, was checked by the blues coach on the field and again in the half, but was removed from the concussion.
Isaah Yeo played 55 minutes in State of Origin I. (Getty Images: Cameron Spencer)
Yeo played 53 minutes in the game, making 10 hits on offense and 30 on defense while the Blues defeated 16-10.
Yeo will not play in Penrith NRL’s game against Newcastle on Sunday.
Speaking to Radio 2GB on Friday, V’landys said that while he thought Yeo should have left, he was pleased that the bunker independent doctor was following the proper process.
“I think he should have gone out,” V’landys said.
“I’m not a doctor, though [the independent doctor in the bunker] he immediately informed the coach of the field, the coach made an assessment and believed that he should not leave.
“But looking at the vision, it’s pretty obvious that in my view it should have come out. But again, I’m not a doctor.”
The independent doctor told the Blues team doctor that Yeo was a category three, which meant there were no clear signs of concussion, which meant NSW coaches were evaluating him on the field.
Blues doctor Nathan Gibbs told News Corp that he was only shown images of the initial contact, not Yeo stumbling, but said the bunker doctor “knows what he’s doing” and has “every angle of the camera “.
“That’s how the system works. We don’t care about that,” he said.
“People who have all the camera angles can make a better call. In the end, they make the call.”
Isaah Yeo left the first tackle in Sydney on Wednesday night. (Getty: Mark Kolbe)
V’landys said, “The right process was followed.”
“They immediately let the coach know, the coach did an evaluation, they re-evaluated him in the middle, he didn’t show any symptoms,” V’landys said.
“The bunker doctor may know more than we do, but at first glance, it certainly looked like he should have come out.
“That’s one of the reasons we have the independent doctor in the bunker.”
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“We take the concussion and the player ‘s well – being very seriously.
“Our actions in the last two years have shown this.
“Player well-being is paramount to us.”
V’landys said head injury rates had dropped “drastically” this season and praised the players for adapting to the new approach to lower tackles.
“We want to make sure that the player, when he leaves the game, leaves with all his faculties and has a quality of life,” he said.
“We want to eradicate the blows to the head.
“We will follow this path, we will make the game safe, in particular, around the head.”