World Cup winner Kat Merchant was left "livid" as it emerged it took medical staff a minute to decide to pull England winger Abby Dow from the Rugby World Cup final amid confusion over whether she had been knocked unconscious.
Dow, 25, was eventually removed from the field for a head injury assessment during Saturday's agonisingly close defeat to New Zealand following a tackle from Kennedy Simon, which was deemed to warrant a yellow card. Dow duly returned to play after passing her HIA, but the delay in examining her has raised serious concerns.
Dow, who broke her leg during the Six Nations against Wales before making a miraculous recovery in time for the World Cup, appeared to stagger as she rose to her feet post-collision.
