Innovative mouthguards introduced to help monitor impact involving players' heads have come in for some heavy criticism after making their debut in the Super Rugby Pacific.
Two players were taken from the field during the clash between the Chiefs and the Crusaders in Waikato, based on the information provided by their mouthguards.
Crusaders lock Quinten Strange was called off in the 14th minute, and looked completely baffled by the decision. Five minutes from time, with the game on the line, Anton Lienert-Brown was equally confused when he was also taken from the field for a HIA.
Crusaders' Scott Barrett was clearly not impressed following the game.
"Honestly, I think it is probably a step too far for a player, when you are getting dragged and you're looking around for what actually happened," Barrett said when asked about the two players who were taken off for HIAs.
"Personally, I think, obviously yeah we want player welfare and that's paramount, but I think you are influencing the game when key players are going off and they don't know what for, I think that can be frustrating for a player.
"So I think, yeah, there needs to be a happy medium somewhere within it."
The Chiefs managed to respond to a second-half fightback by the Crusaders to open their Super Rugby Pacific campaign with a victory.
