Brain injury charity hails Hull and Chelsea's treatment of Ryan Mason after midfielder's skull fracture
Mason received treatment on the pitch for around nine minutes before being stretched off
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Headway, the brain injury charity, has praised medical teams from Hull City and Chelsea following the swift treatment of Ryan Mason, who suffered a fractured skull during the Premier League meeting between both clubs on Sunday.
Mason received treatment on the pitch for around nine minutes after a clash of heads with Chelsea defender Gary Cahill during the first half of Hull's 2-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge.
The 25-year-old midfielder underwent surgery at St Mary's Hospital in London the same evening and, as of Monday morning, his club are awaiting a further update on his condition.
Headway chief executive Peter McCabe said: "I was actually at the match and, while it was upsetting to witness the incident, it was encouraging to see the exemplary reaction of the medical teams.
"Headway has been critical of the way in which head injuries have been treated in many high-profile football incidents in recent years, but it is positive to see that lessons appear to have been learned."
Mason received assistance on the field from members of both clubs' medical teams and later received messages of support from many of his fellow professionals. Hull issued a statement on Sunday evening, describing their record signing's condition as "stable". The club expect the former Tottenham midfielder to be in hospital "for the next few days".
Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte expressed hope that Mason would make a quick recovery immediately after the match, prior to news of his operation. Conte also revealed Cahill's half-time condition "wasn't really good", yet the England international completed the match, scoring Chelsea's second goal 10 minutes from time. Cahill was assessed by Chelsea's medical staff for some time during the break in play as Mason was attended to.
Headway did not reference Cahill in its statement and it is not possible to make head injury assessments from afar.
The charity last September questioned whether concussion protocols were being observed in football, calling for an independent review after an incident involving Manchester United's Anthony Martial. Headway's concerns specifcally surrounded whether rules introduced in August 2014 were being applied, not specifically the treatment of Martial.
The regulations include the employment of a third 'tunnel doctor' to help team medics identify concussions and whether a player is fit to continue. Headway favour an approach where, if there is any doubt over a player's fitness to continue, they are withdrawn from the action.
Additional reporting by PA
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments