After one of the most farcical incidents to have ever happened on a rugby pitch occurred during a Leinster schools match between Roscrea and Gonzaga, Leinster Rugby launched an investigation.
In the incident, the referee Gary Glennon ordered a player off the pitch with a suspected concussion. The issue arose when a representative from Gonzaga tried to argue with the referee that the player had not sustained a concussion and wanted to perform a head injury assessment. The physio was seen shouting at the referee, and halted the game before the referee stuck to his guns and ordered the player off:
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 Leinster rugby schools committee immediately backed the referee in his actions in enforcing the player off, and launched an investigation into the matter.
The released the results of that investigation today, further backing the referee and reminding the general public that a HIA only applies to professional players and that any youth or amateur player must be taken from the field of play if the referee has any doubt.
Here is the full statement:
The Leinster Rugby Schools Committee, chaired by Conor Montayne, has investigated an incident that occurred in the Bank of Ireland Leinster Schools Senior Cup match between Cistercian College Roscrea and Gonzaga College on Thursday, 11th February.
Committee member Paul Kieran, a representative of Gonzaga College, was excused from the investigation.
Following the investigation, the Leinster Rugby Schools Committee would like to publicly support referee Gary Glennon and to reaffirm that 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.
"The Leinster Rugby Schools Committee would also like to thank all parties for their cooperation in this matter which has now been dealt with to the satisfaction of the Schools Committee, of both schools and of the Association of Referees Leinster Branch.
"The Leinster Rugby Schools Committee would finally like to take this opportunity to again impress upon all those involved with the game at domestic level to educate themselves about 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.
"The Leinster Rugby Schools Committee will be making no further comment in relation to this investigation
