England hooker Jamie George has found himself in the middle of a head injury storm after being cleared to return to the field despite showing sings of concussion.
George had been yellow carded during Saracens' Champions Cup defeat at Edinburgh for a high tackle on Luke Crosbie which resulted in a head-on-head collison.
The Saracens medical team deemed the 32-year-old fit to return to play following his 10 minutes in the sin bin but he was subsequently stood down by the match doctor.
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This has brought into question rugby's management of head injuries at the top level.
“I don’t know exactly what happened,” said Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall.
“It appears that Jamie passed his HIA (head injury assessment) and someone has had a further look at it and thought it better that he were withdrawn from the game.
“And, of course, that’s the right decision.”
George faces a minimum seven-day stand-down period, with England starting their Six Nations campaign against Scotland on 4 February.
The handling of George's head injury has been widely criticised on social media with Progressive Rugby, a lobby group comprised of doctors, professional players, and coaches to make the game safer, insist the Saracens man should never have been allowed back onto the field.
In a statement, they said: “In our view England hooker Jamie George demonstrated clear category 1 symptoms and has wrongly undergone a HIA instead of being permanently removed. This failure of process, which again calls into question the effectiveness of the HIA tool, not only puts the player at potentially catastrophic risk but is damaging to the image of the game we all love.
“At a time when the amateur game is being asked to undertake significant change on the grounds of safety, it’s incumbent on the professional game to get their house in order. We ask that the relevant governing body investigate this incident as a matter of urgency and wish Jamie George all the best with his recovery.”
Following the collisions George seemed to be showing signs of concussion with former England outside-half Andy Goode, who is now a top level pundit, tweeting: "Whoever cleared Jamie George to go back on the pitch after that head knock and whiplash needs to give their own head a wobble."
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