Shouldn’t have happened: Katoa still on players’ minds
Scott Bailey and Darren Walton |
New Zealand coach Stacey Jones has backed calls for greater scrutiny of warm ups, as Kiwi and Samoan players reveal their heartbreak over Eliesa Katoa’s head injury.
The NRL is continuing a review into Katoa’s three head knocks at Eden Park, with the Tonga star still recovering in Auckland after seizure activity and a brain bleed.
The matter of most interest remains Katoa’s initial head knock in the warm up, which Tonga’s medical staff did not believe required more than an on-field check.
Replays of the incident, captured by broadcasters, showed Katoa falling backwards to the ground after teammate Lehi Hopoate’s shoulder struck him in the head.
The 25-year-old then suffered two further hits to his head in the game, and while he passed a HIA for the first of those the Melbourne star fell ill after the second.
Tonga officials maintained they did not see a replay of the Katoa’s collision with Hopoate in the warm up until after the game.
Under current rules clubs have spotters at training looking for head knocks, while all contact sessions must be videoed to allow any hits to the head to be reviewed.
An independent doctor in the bunker also watches all contact in games to identify head knocks, with trainers also at the ground to check head contact.
But as it stands there are no such measures required for pre-game, with Katoa’s sickening collision with Hopoate the first noted warm-up incident of its kind.
“There should be scrutiny around it,” Jones said, when asked if there needed to be more done to ensure head knocks weren’t happening in warm ups.
“I don’t know what went on … but there has got to be some real good care around the players.
“We have it at training.
“But again I don’t know enough to comment what went on.
“My thoughts and prayers are really just with Eli right at the moment … Obviously it wasn’t nice and I just hope for Eli to make a full recovery.”
Jones’s comments come after fellow Kiwis great Shaun Johnson said earlier this week “heads will roll” over the incident, furious Katoa was allowed on the field.
Katoa’s former teammate at the Warriors, Jazz Tevaga, said the situation should “never have happened”.
“It’s very heartbreaking to see for my brother Eli,” Tevaga told AAP at Samoa’s fan day ahead of Sunday’s Pacific Cup final against New Zealand.
“I sent him a message and pray he is okay.
“It shouldn’t have happened, but it did happen. All we can do is pray and hope he comes through the other side.”
Kiwi forward Isaiah Papali’i said Katoa had also been on his mind.
“I’ve never really experienced or seen anything like that before,” Papali’i said.
“He’s a good friend of mine from when he first came into the Warriors, I was there.
“I don’t really know how to comprehend or go about it in terms of what the next steps are. But I just want him to make a full recovery or get back to full health.
“Pretty much the whole rugby league community or everyone that knows him is behind him and thinking of him through some pretty tough times.
“But I know he’ll be strong and he’ll bounce back.”
AAP
