Head and neck injuries are now in the past and Italy, on Saturday, are in Conor Murray’s future
The Munster scrum-half is taking contact again, following a period on the sidelines with disc swelling in his neck, and should start for Ireland in their Six Nations opener, in Rome. ‘It’s gone now,’ says Murray. ‘There is no hassle over it.’
It is the first time in Murray’s five-year career that he has suffered a neck injury. ‘I just ran into a [Zebre] players’ chest and squashed myself,’ he explains. ‘It wasn’t the smartest idea. I won’t be doing that again. ‘
Not one iota of fear exists as he prepares to face gunning Italian forwards such as Alessandro Zanni and Sergio Parisse. ‘God no,’ he proclaims. ‘I have done my contact. I have done bag work, tackled a few of the lads and feel good. I’ve gotten through that first contact fear if you want to call it that.’
Murray also underwent a concussion test for that early January injury he picked up against Zebre. He passed the Head Injury Assessment on the day but, SportsJOE pointed out, he also came through the HIA against Australia, in November, only to be later found to have suffered a concussive blow.
He says, ‘The [IRFU medical] lads handled it really well at the time. There are protocols in place and they followed each and every one of them. Sometimes you do get a delayed concussion onset and that is what happened me. I got taken off in the game and passed all the questions and balance test, which meant I was fit to play. I came back on and finished the game fine.
‘Later on, after the game, I just didn’t feel right. It’s hard to put your finger on it. You just don’t feel right. Maybe [you] might have a little headache. I had a slight headache, nothing major. I just felt a little bit off. You can’t put your finger on it. I have had concussions before where I felt the same, I knew what was up. So I knew I had to follow the protocols, look after myself and get back playing, which is what I did.’
Murray admits, however, that he was reluctant to leave the Australia game, with Ireland protecting a narrow lead at the time. ‘In that game,’ he says, ‘you can see me when I’m called off, I’m shaking my head as if there is nothing wrong with me.
‘In the days after that game I did feel a little bit off. I had to tell the lads. We are all more educated on concussion and we all understand what the potential risks are down the line.’
Murray adds, ‘If you hide it and play another game you could be out for a longer period of time. It is within our best interests as well to tell the coaches and they appreciate that too.’
As for the upcoming, Italian challenge, the scrum-half says, ‘They are hugely strong at home and in their first game. You have seen that over the last few seasons. They have put together huge performances. We got to be ready for that.’
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