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There have been suggestions that the Blues attempted to manipulate the HIA process after their Super Rugby Pacific victory over the Hurricanes at the weekend.
The Auckland-based outfit were leading 33-29 in the 79th minute when they were awarded a scrum five metres out from their own line.
During that passage of play, replacement scrum-half Sam Nock went down with what appeared to be a leg injury. However, the Blues claimed that he needed a HIA, which would have allowed them to bring All Blacks number nine Finlay Christie back on.
It was duly reviewed by the independent medics and, after several minutes of deliberation, they decided that Nock had not sustained a head injury.
Beauden Barrett moves to scrum-half
As a result, the Blues, who were down to 14 men following Hoskins Sotutu’s high shot, decided to bring on Corey Evans with Beauden Barrett acting as half-back for the final stages of the contest.
Vern Cotter’s men managed to see out the win – the defending champions’ first victory of the campaign – but it was a contentious moment.
On The Breakdown, presenter Kirstie Stanway-Thorne asked: “Were the Blues trying to cheat but just didn’t get away with it?”
All Blacks great Mils Muliaina, who was on the panel, initially defended the Blues’ actions, claiming: “If they were and were trying to break the rules, what coach doesn’t try and break the rules?”
Muliaina then moved onto his main frustration over the incident, which was how long it took for a decision to be made.
“The thing that got me was that it was the heat of the battle, this game was on edge, there was so much in it,” he said.
“Did we really need that? Did we really need the match official to go, ‘actually, the Blues have said HIA, could you go through the process?’
“They even wanted to send Sam Nock back on.
“Moving forward, are we constantly going to be checking things when someone says, ‘HIA, HIA’. Is it now up to the medical side to actually check every single bit?”
All Blacks centurion ‘barking’ at Blues to make key Beauden Barrett call with Vern Cotter’s reluctance possibly affecting Scott Robertson
Muliaina argued that if laws were to be broken then it should be dealt with after the match, rather than wasting time at a crucial moment in the contest.
“If we’re going to play detective and it’s obvious what they’ve done, do it after the game. And if it comes up that they were trying to manipulate it…” he added.
“Be a detective afterwards, we don’t need to waste five minutes and fans being a bit confused.”
Hurricanes viewpoint
The former Blues and Chiefs star was joined on the panel by ex-Highlanders lock Joe Wheeler, who looked at it from the opponents’ perspective.
“The Hurricanes would be blowing up, going, ‘look at Sam Nock, he was down with a leg injury, that should be a penalty to us’,” Wheeler said.
“That’s the consequence, right. If you go on the other foot and look at it from a ‘Canes perspective, they’re going, ‘they’ve fudged that’.”
Wheeler did ultimately agree with Muliaina over the time aspect, however, after it took several minutes to sort out the situation.
“You’re right Milsy, in the last minute of the game, they’ve spent five minutes floating around and it was on a knife-edge, and you’ve just ruined the drama,” he added.
Muliaina concluded that if the Blues had been trying to manipulate the system then there should be consequences, but that the game’s spectacle ultimately comes first.
“If it was the case that they were caught cheating, be a detective after, take the points off them and give the Hurricanes the win,” he said.
“Don’t waste 10 minutes when fans are watching and it’s on a knife-edge, and it comes to a technicality that no one really knows about.”
Super Rugby statement
Super Rugby Pacific duly released a statement after the match, telling The Roar that no action would be taken against the Blues.
“Super Rugby Pacific management has reviewed the substitution of Blues player Sam Nock in the Hurricanes vs. Blues match on Saturday 1 March,” it read.
“Based on all available evidence, it has been concluded there was no breach of tournament protocol or laws in the process of the substitution.
“Blues medical staff acted in accordance with all protocols in attempting to remove their player for the purposes of conducting a head injury assessment (HIA).
“The situation at Sky Stadium was then complicated by the unnecessary involvement of club staff on the sideline, and this matter will be addressed directly with the clubs.
“Super Rugby Pacific is committed to the welfare and safety of its players and will continue to ensure World Rugby’s HIA protocols are respected by all clubs in the competition.”
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