Clouds of concussion loom large over hurling's final four

In keeping with a campaign that has seen its fair share of head injuries, the issue will impact both semi-finals this weekend

DANGER ZONE: John Conlon of Clare, who was subsequently substituted, is attended to medical attention during the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship Quarter Final match between Clare and Dublin at TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Pic: Ray McManus/Sportsfile

Almost 10 years to the day that he previously suffered head trauma in TUS Gaelic Grounds, John Conlon was again being helped off the Ennis Road field and again in the first half of a championship game.

Concussed against Cork in a Munster semi-final on June 23, 2013, the day that marked his 24th birthday, his latest experience of the condition came on June 24 this year when he was hurt following a first-half collision with Danny Sutcliffe in Clare’s comprehensive All-Ireland quarter-final win over Dublin.

What some may forget about Conlon’s situation is the mistimed shoulder he took to the head from Conor Burke earlier in the first half, which earned the Dublin defender a yellow card. The clash with Sutcliffe in the 20th minute was what forced off the Clonlara man but it might have been compounded by the fifth-minute foul.

As Clare supporters wait with bated breath to learn of his fitness for Sunday’s All-Ireland semi-final, which won’t be fully confirmed until an hour before throw-in, Conlon is around too long not to make the right decision.

After missing out on last year’s corresponding game with Kilkenny through injury, his absence contributing to Clare’s below-par display against Kilkenny if not the prime reason for it, he will obviously be eager to play.

At the same time, Shane O’Donnell’s frightening chronicle of his concussion experience from a training game in June 2021 won’t be lost on Conlon nor what he himself went through following that blow in the 2013 Munster semi-final against Cork.

Hospitalised afterwards, his blood pressure later exceeded 200. Speaking a month later, he said: "It happened about five minutes in. I got a bang in the head and I don't remember any of the game. I had to go to hospital because my blood pressure went up over 200.

“But thankfully I was fine. I was 10 days out of action but I came around quickly after the game. I think they finally realised (something was wrong) after about 18 or 20 minutes when I asked which way I was playing.” 

Concussion hasn’t escaped Kilkenny this year either. After March’s Division 1, Group B win over Dublin in UPMC Nowlan Park, Conlon’s opposing centre-back on Sunday Richie Reid and goalkeeper Eoin Murphy were diagnosed with the condition. Reid missed out on the final game in Division 1, Group B game against Waterford as well as semi-final victory over Cork.

Speaking after the win over Waterford, Kilkenny manager Derek Lyng said: “It was serious enough to keep him out until now. We thought he was feeling a bit better but again, just a few symptoms during the week so we weren’t taking any chances with him. We just have to keep an eye on him but at the minute he’s feeling a little bit better than he was during the week.” 

Murphy, who sat out the subsequent Waterford game, has experienced concussion at least four times. Speaking in 2018 after a whiplash-like collision with Waterford’s Tom Devine in the league, he said: “It was awkward enough, I couldn't drive. The muscles kept flaring up for a couple of weeks so there was a good bit of work with physios.” 

From those league games to the head-high hits on Stephen Bennett on day one in the Munster SHC to now, concussion’s threat has loomed considerably over this hurling year.

In May, Cathal Barrett failed a head injury assessment having taken a blow in the draw against Limerick in Thurles. The sight of him on the sideline imploring Dr Paul Ryan and manager Liam Cahill to be allowed return to the field before Cahill gave him a firm “no” was an example of how such matters have to be taken out of the player’s hands.

It was reminiscent of Limerick star Seán Finn’s recollection of his first concussion, picked up against Cork in last year’s league. “It was my first concussion. I was keen to come on the field at the time. I was trying to make up the answers to what they were asking me – I think I got them all wrong! (I suffered) a loss of memory, really. Severe headaches.” 

Barrett didn’t play against Waterford seven days later nor in the preliminary quarter-final against Offaly a month on. In last month’s U20 All-Ireland final, Cormac Egan didn’t return to the fray after half-time following an dangerous shoulder hit on him by Shane Kingston 10 minutes into the game.

Earlier this year, an Ulster University study found there were 183 potential concussion events in 82 inter-county hurling games across 2018 and ’19. An educated guess would figure that average of 2.23 events per match would be eclipsed this year. Conlon has been at the receiving end of more than his fair share of them.