Scotland believe the alert was triggered when France’s Charles Ollivon was brought down by Turner following the restart in the 12th minute after a penalty by Thomas Ramos.
Rugby union faces a crisis over safety, with hundreds of former players taking the game’s governing bodies to court over the management of head injuries during their careers.
The new technology was introduced by World Rugby after a £1.7 million investment in October to support their implementation. As part of their position on long term neurodegenerative disease and repeated head impacts, World Rugby acknowledges the importance of focusing not just on concussion but forces to the head which may not cause medical symptoms.
Scotland Head coach Gregor Townsend expressed caution about the new technology, urging the need to use it correctly to avoid having an unintended impact on Test matches.
“I don’t think there was any more that came out of it but we just have to watch what we’re doing here with bringing technology in that might have an influence for not the correct reasons, let’s say,” Townsend said.
When a player receives a knock, the gumshield measures the hit’s strength – similar to a speedometer gauging the acceleration of a car.
The gumshields – made by Prevent Biometrics - record the acceleration force (G-force) and direction of force involved in contacts, which are known as “head acceleration events”.
When a player receives a knock, the gumshield measures the hit’s strength – similar to a speedometer gauging the acceleration of a car.
To put the collision into context, ex-Formula One driver Romain Grosjean experienced an impact of 67g when he suffered his fireball crash in the 2020 Grand Prix, while Max Verstappen experienced 51g force when he crashed at the 2021 British Grand Prix after colliding with Lewis Hamilton.
Current regulations state that for men’s players an impact above 70g and 4,000 radians per second squared will recommend a HIA, with lower thresholds of 55g and 4,000 rad/s² for women’s players.
Smart gumshields provide real-time data to a doctor or official on the sidelines and be utilised to inform the HIA process players go through after head contact.
CTE is a progressive brain condition thought to be caused by repeated blows to the head. Popham is one of 300 former players suing for negligence, claiming the sport caused his brain damage.
The spotlight comes as the sport reckons with its past. Former Wales flanker Alix Popham, who won 33 caps between 2003 and 2008 and played in two world cups was diagnosed with early onset dementia and probable chronic traumatic encephalopathy at the age of just 40.
CTE is a progressive brain condition that is thought to be caused by repeated blows to the head and episodes of concussion. Popham is one of the 300 former players suing rugby union’s governing bodies for negligence, claiming that the sport caused his brain damage.
Commenting on his experience in the sport for charity Head for Change, Popham said “There was no education on concussion. I only found out after the scan that 90 percent of concussions happen when you are conscious.”
"During training you would be seeing stars regularly after a hit but you were given a dose of sniffing salts, that was the way it was.
"Training was harder than the games. Players who wanted your place were hitting seven bells out of you. It was like the Wild West."
The ORCHID study revealed that 86% of forces experienced by players were comparable to general exercise, suggesting the risks may not be as pervasive as once feared.
Amidst concerns about the long-term effects of rugby-related head injuries, the ORCHID study, jointly conducted by World Rugby and leading sports and health organisations, sheds new light on the impacts experienced by players.
Utilising advanced mouthguard technology to measure over 17,000 head acceleration events, the study revealed that a significant majority of forces encountered by players are on par with or less than those experienced in everyday physical activities like running or jumping.
Specifically, 86% of these forces were found to be comparable to general exercise, suggesting that the risk may not be as pervasive as once feared.
The Orchid study's lead author acknowledges the technology is still in its infancy.
Professor Melanie Bussey, of the University of Otago, said: "Player safety is our utmost concern, and this technology is giving us the best chance we have of understanding the multifactorial nature of head injury in sport.
"But we need a lot more research to understand the clinical relevance of this data. That is how science works."
The disruptive effect of smart gumshields on the game has come under fire after making their debut in the opening Super Rugby Pacific games.
All Blacks star Anton Lienerty-Brown looked visibly upset when he was sent from the field with a little over five minutes to go with one point separating the Chiefs and Crusaders in Hamilton.
It's in the safety (interests) of the players. At the moment, it's certainly having a critical effect on the Chiefs.
Jeff Wilson, former All Black
Former All Black Jeff Wilson said thresholds have been an issue with the mouthguards but noted that players are required to leave once a point has been read.
"It's certainly not perfect practice, they've admitted they've got some learning to do," said Wilson.
"But it's in the safety (interests) of the players. At the moment, it's certainly having a critical effect on the Chiefs."
The integration of smart gumshields into the Six Nations is a bold leap forward for rugby's ongoing commitment to player welfare. This commitment echoes past successes, such as the Harlequins' tactical use of mouthguard data to inform their training strategies, contributing to their Premiership title-winning season in 2021.
Questions remain about the accuracy of technology under extreme conditions, highlighting the need for continuous improvement and rigorous validation. Experts like Dr Doug King, a New Zealand-based expert in head injury and head biomechanics, said concussions often occur above 90G and was therefore concerned the data was not showing "the full picture".
As rugby embraces this innovative path, it must balance the enthusiasm for new safety measures with the diligence of learning from past oversights. The true success of such technology will be measured not just by its ability to detect impacts, but by its contribution to the sustainable health and safety of the athletes who give the sport its spirit.
