Heaslip says rugby is safer than ever

Ireland No 8 Jamie Heaslip says player safety in rugby is a higher priority than when he made his international debut a decade ago.

New Zealand-born match citing commissioner Bruce Kuklinski reviewed 12 incidents from the All Blacks 21-9 win over Ireland in Dublin on Saturday, and three Ireland players, Robbie Henshaw, CJ Stander and Rob Kearney suffered head injuries during a hard-fought match at the Aviva Stadium.

Ireland No 12 Henshaw left the field on a stretcher with his neck in a brace, and Irish team manager Mick Kearney confirmed the Leinster centre will miss the match against Australia on Saturday in Dublin under concussion protocols.

Blindside flanker Stander and full-back Kearney will need to complete the head injury assessment [HIA] process and the return to play protocols.

Heaslip, who suffered four broken vertebrae last year after a knee in the back from French lock Pascal Pape, doesn't believe the sport is becoming more violent, and says World Rugby guidelines such as the HIA process are doing a good job in protecting the players.

"I’ve been playing professional rugby now for eleven years and the approach to injury and whatever it is with the body, has drastically changed in that time," he told The Times.

"It has gotten drastically better year on year. As a player that’s what you hope for. As a player you enter the game knowing there is a bit of risk to it. If it was easy everyone would be playing it but it’s not. It’s a tough bloody game.”

"I am not concerned at all because you enter the game knowing there is a risk. It’s a physical game, you know.

"You hope everyone who’s involved in the game are putting things in place to make sure they’re looking after you. We’re given the guidance from our coaches who get it from World Rugby or the referees. We play to the best of our ability within those rules.

"It’s a physical game, a dynamic game. It’s ever-moving, ever-evolving. People make mistakes. Sometimes someone gets a shot in the head. A lad falls on you, you get a knee in the head. All sorts of things can happen. You just hope that you have the medical team around you to look after you."

Photo (©Inpho/Morgan Treacy)

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