SA Rugby’s Blue Card concussion system will be in force for all matches where the head injury assessment (HIA) is not in play, and a zero-tolerance policy towards head injuries and concussion will be adhered to.
The HIA is applicable only to World Rugby-approved tournaments at the elite professional level, including Test matches, the United Rugby Championship, the Heineken Champions Cup, and the EPCR Challenge Cup, as well as the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series for men and women.
Locally, the HIA is not applicable for any other matches played, even at the provincial level, if the competition is not sanctioned by World Rugby and does not meet the medical requirements for the HIA to be utilized.
For these as well as all other matches, Laws 3.24 and 3.22 (c) or the “Recognize and Remove” Law will be in effect, and the Blue Card must be utilized.
When the Blue Card is applied, the referee will be forced to physically show the card and the wounded player will be required to leave the field. The referee will then be required to register the incident on SA Rugby’s online Blue Card portal.
“Reporting these incidents is crucial so that we can monitor concussions recorded at these levels throughout South Africa,” said SA Rugby’s Senior Manager: Medical, Clint Readhead.
“We cannot know the true risk if we do not have the full picture. Therefore, this procedure is essential for advancing our understanding of concussion incidents in South African amateur sports. In addition, it is crucial that concussed athletes and their immediate support network have access to the appropriate return to play and player-management information.
Although this applies to all amateur rugby in South Africa, it is also important for “recognize and remove” televised matches where the HIA does not apply. By displaying the blue cards on television, we will emphasize to the spectators that head injuries and concussions are taken extremely seriously.”
Readhead also reminded provincial unions, clubs, schools, and other teams that rugby concussion specialists from Sports Concussion SA’s medical professional network are always available at their own expense should they be required.
Dr. Wayne Viljoen, Senior Manager for Rugby Safety at SA Rugby and leader of the BokSmart program, stated: “We now have the online MyBokSmart Learning Management System (LMS) as part of the BokSmart Certification Software Ecosystem, provided by SportsCap, our official software partner.
Freely available on MyBokSmart Medical, the Concussion Blue Card System Module describes the Blue Card System and its reporting in detail.
This program is mandatory for all match officials, provincial referee associations, and team medical personnel.”
»Blue is the color as South African Rugby takes concussion awareness seriously«