Pies pair still hope to meet Swans

COLLINGWOOD’S bid to clear Nathan Murphy and Jordan Roughead to play Sydney has been backed by concussion experts and the league’s own rules on head knocks.

The Magpies will accept the AFL’s view on its new concussion protocol but only subbed Murphy from Saturday’s victory because of his history of head knocks.

The AFL made clear in its January protocols that clubs could rule out players under “presumptive concussion” then appeal for them to be cleared if they did not suffer concussion.

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said after the match that Murphy and Roughead had passed concussion tests despite finishing the game off the ground.

Murphy passed the SCAT tests as required but after multiple concussions in last year the Pies doctor decided against him returning to the ground.

He was concussed in a VFL practice match against Richmond last month, and also suffered a hit late last year which fractured his cheekbone.

Roughead was shaken in a hit with North Melbourne’s Cam Zurhaar in the last term, and the Pies’ doctor assessed the damage.

With only 20 minutes remaining in the game, he didn’t return but again he passed the range of SCAT tests as the doctor also analysed vision.

Former AFL concussion researcher Alan Pearce, now associated with the Australian Sports Brain Bank, said the players could make a case to play Sydney. He said the Pies doctor should be commended for showing caution.

“There are always grey areas but each case should be looked at individually. The media release talked about presumptive concussion,” he said.

“So if a player is brought off and looks concussed and the doctor from the club decides upon further examination they weren’t concussed, they fall under the presumptive concussion clause.

“So they can be cleared as long as they talk to the chief medical officer. It would be good to have testing for biomarkers which doesn’t rely on symptoms to show if players were concussed.”