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"I just couldn't remember any calls" - Henderson opens up about concussion
Ireland forward Iain Henderson has given a frank account of his recent concussion that he suffered in Ulster’s 64-7 defeat to Munster at Thomand Park.
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Remarkably he’s back just a week after the knock, starting against Connacht, having passed the return to play protocols in the six-day minimum period.
Henderson knew he was in trouble when it came to a lineout.
“I just couldn’t remember any calls,” he said.
“I paused for 10 seconds, and I think it was Andy Warwick who asked ‘what do you want to call?’ and I was just looking at the ground. It was just bizarre, I was lost for words.”
“I was standing there, and I remember everyone was looking at the ground and a bit of panic set in because I couldn’t think of what to call, so I was like ‘just call something simple’ and I didn’t even know any simple calls.
“I couldn’t even think of the simplest lineout call and I was just standing there. Big Al O’Connor said ‘I think we’ll do this one’, and I went into the lineout and still couldn’t think of it.”
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It was the British and Irish Lion’s first concussion of his career.
“I was well looked after,” he said. “I felt completely fine after the game and I kind of felt like saying to them ‘do I have to go through all the HIA’s protocols?’
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“I felt fine and I’ve been fine through all of them.”
Henderson will be joined in the starting line-up against Connacht by Rory Best and Jacob Stockdale, who will make their first appearances of the season.
Ulster team to face Connacht:
15. Peter Nelson; 14. Angus Kernohan, 13. Angus Curtis, 12. Stuart McCloskey, 11. Jacob Stockdale, 10. Billy Burns, 9. John Cooney; 1. Andrew Warwick, 2 Rory Best (C), 3. Tom O’Toole, 4. Alan O’Connor, 5. Iain Henderson, 6. Matthew Rea, 7. Nick Timoney, 8. Marcell Coetzee
Replacements: 16. Adam McBurney, 17. Eric O’Sullivan, 18. Ross Kane, 19. Kieran Treadwell, 20. Sean Reidy, 21. Dave Shanahan, 22. Johnny McPhillips, 23. James Hume.
