Rugby: Ben Smith cleared of concussion concerns

Ben Smith. Photo / Getty

The relief within the All Blacks camp that Ben Smith is not battling repeat concussion issues is obvious.

No one really wanted to let on that there has been significant concern since the first test that the All Blacks fullback may have had a deeper issue which was causing him to more readily and easily incur concussions.

He came off in the first half of the first test for a head injury assessment which he failed, yet with no discernible evidence that he had suffered a major impact.

That was the third instance this year where he had failed a head injury assessment and the All Blacks medical team were concerned that Smith seemed to have a low threshold around concussion.

There have been instances where the more concussions a player accumulates, the more easily they occur - that is that seemingly minor head knocks can result in a concussion.

But Smith, who has been subjected to rigorous medical tests in the last week, has been declared to have an inner ear problem rather than a concussion issue.

The concussion symptoms he has been suffering have been related to a problem with his inner ear - which is why he has presented as dizzy and nauseous at times.

The relief, that his symptoms are not a result of his brain having been damaged and are fixable through a course of medication, is enormous for both player and coaching team.

"Ben has had some tests done over the last seven or eight days and he has been cleared of concussion and he doesn't have a concussion problem," said All Blacks coach Steve Hansen.

"He wasn't knocked out. What he does have, though is an inner ear malfunction which is causing him to get a bit of vertigo and dizziness.

"That is great for Ben and [his wife] Katie and takes a weight off their shoulders. What we have deemed to think was concussion three or four times this year was in fact a different problem which we have been able to identify and start to medicate."

Smith has rejoined the squad and is likely to make a playing return when the Highlanders get back into Super Rugby action next week.

Hansen will be as relieved as anyone to see his vice captain back in action and build his confidence ahead of the Rugby Championship.

The All Blacks have missed Smith's calm authority in the series against the Lions. They particularly missed him in Wellington and his ability to see space and exploit it.

The All Blacks agree they became a little narrow in their attacking vision and would have benefited from Smith's ability to tell others around him where the ball needed to go.

Having lost Sonny Bill Williams to a red card after 25 minutes, the All Blacks were scrambling for much of the game and the presence of Smith would have been invaluable.

The possibility of being without him longer term was not one that the All Blacks were relishing and to know that he should be back at full noise come August, and also Dane Coles, too, is a major bonus ahead of the third test against the Lions.