The prospect of a match-altering technology failure playing a significant role in deciding the Super Rugby title has been raised after a confounding failure during the semis.
Issues with the smart mouthgards used by players to help safeguard them after head knocks arose with a case of mistaken identity forcing Ethan Blackadder from the field after teammate Scott Barrett was involved in a head clash.
In all, eight players from across both sides were removed for assessments during the Crusaders’ 21-14 win over the Blues.
While the number was a significant increase on usual, it also points to possible reliability issues ahead of this weekend’s final between the Chiefs and Crusaders.
The mouthguards were introduced ahead of the 2024 season and send an alert to medical staff so a player who has suffered a significant head knock can be withdrawn from the pitch for a concussion test.
In the 26th minute of Friday’s game Blues’ prop Joshua Fusitu’a was yellow carded after a dangerous tackle head clash with Barrett.
Ethan Blackadder of the Crusaders. (Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)
Before play resumed referee James Doleman sent Blackadder from the field for an assessment due to an alert from his mouthguard.
The Crusader looked puzzled and raised his concerns with Doleman. After two minutes on the sideline, Barrett was removed and Blackadder returned.
The TV commentators were taken aback by the confusion, with Justin Marshall asking “how on earth do they get that wrong?”
Crusaders assistant coach Matt Todd, speaking on NZ radio, raised fears a failure could impact the final.
“We probably didn’t have that many all season combined,” said Todd. “Not sure if it was just a really physical game or something else.
“To be honest, I’m not sure how it happened, that’s more the head coach’s area, but it was certainly strange.
“I don’t know how you get the wrong player in that instance. In big games, you don’t want to be losing players for unclear reasons. It’s got to be better than that.”
There were issues in the opening round of the 2024 season which Super Rugby addressed.
Barrett was one player who raised concerns at the time.
“Honestly, I think it’s probably a step too far,” Barrett said last year. “When you’re getting dragged and you’re looking round for what actually happened.
“We want player welfare, and that’s paramount, but I think if you’re influencing the game when key players are going off and they don’t know what for, I think that can be frustrating for a player.
“I think there needs to be a happy medium somewhere within it. Potentially, it could be trialled within training.”
