Losing CJ Stander so soon after Robbie Henshaw and Johnny Sexton was a mortal wound.
New Zealand certainly brought the fight to their return Test match with Ireland, last night, and there were a heap of bodies left in a heap. Sam Cane [ankle] and Ben Smith [broken finger] were two of the main All Blacks casualties but Ireland fared much worse.
Three Irish players went for concussion tests this evening
Henshaw, Stander & Rob Kearney. Also, Sexton did his other (good) hamstring
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) November 19, 2016
Stander was having one of those superb games for Ireland. He had nine carries in his 22 minutes on the pitch and was troubling the Kiwis no end.
Ireland were 14-3 down but building phases and testing the All Blacks out wide. Stander went on one charge up the left flank that threatened much but ultimately damaged Ireland’s chances.
Israel Dagg was not the only All Black to lay in hits with no attempt to wrap his arms. As Stander attempted to bull through, the New Zealand winger swivelled his shoulder and the crown of Stander’s head got the brunt of it.
He went off for a Head Injury Assessment but did not return to the pitch.
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said he had no arguments with the yellow cards or penalties his team were hit with by referee Jaco Peyper. Asked if he would have a word with his players about their high tackling techniques, he offered a one-word reply:
“Yes.”
All well and good but too late for Henshaw. Too late for Simon Zebo and Rob Kearney. Too late for Stander.
This is what concussed Stander – no arms shoulder drop from Dagg pic.twitter.com/E8R74X45dy
— Three Red Kings (@threeredkings) November 19, 2016
Here is that Dagg ‘action’ from another angle.
— Three Red Kings (@threeredkings) November 19, 2016
The hits were made, the milk was spilt.
No point crying about it (after today) but World Rugby would want to have a serious look at what their officials are allowing to play out at the highest level of the game.
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