THOUSANDS of fans across Wales were screaming at their TVs on Friday night after that second blow to George North.

Twitter and Facebook erupted within seconds.

Get the man off, was the universal reaction.

We could see there was something wrong. Most of us were calling for Liam Williams to replace him.

So it's no surprise today to read that the governing body World Rugby is investigating whether "all concussion" protocols were followed by Wales.

North suffered heavy head blows in each half - a boot to the head while on the floor in the first half, when he was off the field for eight minutes replaced by Williams.

Midway through the second half he suffered another blow to the head, falling to the floor.

North finished Friday's 21-16 loss to England, passing tests during and after the Six Nations match in Cardiff.

Wales are now treating "symptom-free" North, 22, as if concussed.

Tight-head prop Samson Lee was concussed in the game, the Welsh Rugby Union has confirmed.

The WRU says that the second incident involving North was not seen at the time, and even though North currently "has no signs and symptoms" they are treating him as concussed after studying video footage.

"He will now undertake a graduated return to play protocol with multiple follow-up cognitive and physical tests," a WRU statement said.

World Rugby has also studied footage of the second-half incident. It wants answers.

A statement on its websitesaid: "Having undertaken an initial review of the broadcast footage, World Rugby is seeking to establish from the WRU whether all concussion management protocols were appropriately followed.

"Concussion management and education is at the heart of World Rugby's player welfare strategy designed to protect players at all levels of the game and promote the very highest standards of education, coaching and medical care."

Warren Gatland said after the match: "The medical team definitely wouldn't have allowed him back on the field unless they were 100 per cent confident that he was OK."

All of us hate losing a Six Nations match, but I haven't come across one fan in the intervening two days who thought it worth keeping North on that pitch on Friday night.

In fact, it has hardened my opinion that team managers or coaches should not be making this decision.

An independent decision has to be taken - whether it's by the referee with advice from an independent doctor, or by an independent doctor alone.

If we have a TMO for scoring tries and infringements on the pitch, why on earth can we not have a TMO for potentially serious medical issues such as this one?

No Six Nations or test win is worth risking the future health of a player - and they are not the best people to make that decision. They want to be brave, to be the hero who carries on despite it all.

Totally understandable - but not right.

And if we can't get this right at the top of world rugby, what hope is there for the grassroots?

Here's another thought - maybe it's also indicative of the far too large reliance this Wales set-up has on the blunt instrument of brute force.

Time we and other sides took a long, hard look at ourselves and thought about how skill and clever tactics should take over from trying to steam-roll the opposition with brutality in the contact area.