There were worrying scenes in the first half of the United Rugby Championship clash
The Dragons’ United Rugby Championship clash with the Stormers was halted after young flanker Harry Beddall was knocked out in a sickening collision.
The clash in Cape Town was just 20 minutes old when proceedings were brought to an abrupt halt, with Dragons star Beddall getting his head on the wrong side of a tackle as he tried to bring down Stormers number eight Evan Roos. He took the full force of the South African’s knee to the side of his head and hit the ground hard as he lay there in a daze.
As referee Andrew Brace blew his whistle to stop the game, medics immediately rushed to the former Wales U20s star’s aid and supported his neck as they began treatment.
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Much to the relief of his team-mates, Beddall was able to put his hand up in the air and give a thumbs up as more medical staff made their way over.
The game was halted for around five minutes as the Welsh back rower continued to receive treatment, before being carried off the field on the medical cart to applause from the crowd inside the DHL Stadium.
He was replaced in the back row by Thomas Young.
The Dragons were trailing 14-0 at the time of the incident after Springbok superstar Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu had put the home side ahead with a well-taken brace.
After slicing through the visitors’ defence to dot down under the posts after 10 minutes, the fly-half had struck again moments before the stoppage, getting on the end of Imad Khan’s clever offload to race over for his second.
Filo Tiatia’s side hit back shortly after Beddall left the field, with Seb Davies spotting the space to burst through the Stormers’ defensive line and pull one back for his team.
In the second half, Feinberg-Mngomezulu extended his side’s lead from the tee, before a huge Stormers scrum saw them overpower the Dragons at their own put-in, with Roos crashing over to score.
However, Tiatia’s men stayed in the fight, with Young reducing the South African’s side to 10 points as he scrambled over the line.
A fine individual effort from Wandi Simelane saw him make it 29-14 to the Stormers just ahead of the hour mark.
The back chased and collected his own grubber kick down the right wing, with the bounce catching out Rio Dyer as he looked to bring it under control.
Dyer would get a try of his own eight minutes from time as he burst through a hole in the hosts’ defence to dot down under the posts, but it was not enough to catch the Stormers, who picked up the bonus point win to keep their title hopes well and truly alive.
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