League greats have been left baffled over the decision to allow Isaah Yeo to remain on the field despite a head-knock that left him wobbly in the first few seconds of the State of Origin opener.
Yeo was flattened by an on-rushing Josh Papalii in the first hit-up of the match, with replays appearing to show the two players’ heads clashing.
The collision between Yeo and Papalii left the commentators flinching in the box.
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“Oh no! Isaah Yeo has stumbled, and he’s the key man for NSW. He’ll be off for a head assessment,” Blues great Andrew Johns said on Nine’s coverage.
“He’s in a lot of trouble, Joey,” added former Maroons skipper Cameron Smith.
It looked like the Panthers star would have to come off the ground, but he remained on and was cleared by the doctors who watched video replays minutes later.
“Isaah Yeo obviously went down in that first tackle of the match, there’s been almost five minutes gone, he stayed on the field but he has been checked by the trainer and he has been cleared,” former Blues skipper Paul Gallen said.
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“The doctors have also assessed the footage and everything seems to be OK at this stage.”
However, Johns was not convinced.
“Well, he stumbled,” he said. “I thought if you stumbled, you’re automatically off.”