KEVIN DOWNES SAID there was no room for taking chances with the concussion that ruled him out of the Munster club hurling final.

The GAA’s protocols on head injuries have been back in the spotlight this week following the nasty clash which left Mayo footballer Lee Keegan in visible distress.

Downes suffered a similar injury himself in the closing minutes of Na Piarsaigh’s win against Thurles Sarsfields in the provincial semis.

The Limerick star immediately faced a race against the clock to be fit for the final against Waterford champions Ballygunner just seven days later.

But when the symptoms didn’t ease, Downes knew that he stood no chance of lining out.

“It was a joint decision really,” he explained.

“Dave Boylan is the club doctor and we just had a chat about it. Were the symptoms going away? No they weren’t.

In fairness to Dave he was very straight down the line. He wasn’t a Na Piarsaigh man with this decision. If there was any doubts, I wasn’t going playing.

Even if he had been determined to tog out, the symptoms would have made it impossible, Downes continued.

“If you were looking at the television, it’s very hard to focus your eyes. Blurred vision. You don’t feel well at all… dizzy.

“Getting pale. Fatigue sets in. You’re straining your eyes. Any movement affects you.

Apart from the medical side of things, playing a game of hurling wouldn’t be ideal with the ball fizzing around.

Mayo’s medical team came under fire for their decision to allow Keegan to play on following his sickening collision with Cork’s Eoin Cadogan last Sunday.

Keegan was quickly to his feet following the clash of heads, and visibly protested that he was ok to continue, but had to be helped from the pitch less than 10 minutes later as his condition deteriorated.

The management quickly issued a statement which accepted that they had made a mistake and that the wing-back should have been withdrawn immediately.

“Concussion is tough to define,” Downes said in reference to the Keegan incident.

“Okay, I knew I was after getting a bang on head – I was feeling blurred, dizzy. But it’s very hard to say, ‘Yes, you are clinically concussed.’ If it’s blatantly obvious, there is a fair old chance you have it.

“Incidents like that, and the Lee Keegan one, will make it more public. Mayo came out and said he should have come off – and he should have. It was blatantly obvious he should have come off.

“Everyone is getting more aware of it now. It is a serious injury.

People were saying to me that it was just protocol that wasn’t allowing me to play but the symptoms don’t allow you to play.

“Bar the obvious dangers that have been publicised recently, the symptoms alone will stop you.”

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