Hurricanes captain Ardie Savea could be the next player to be suspended for unsportsmanlike behaviour after his throat-slitting gesture against the Melbourne Rebels.
Over the years, several players have been banned for contravening Law 9.27: “A player must not do anything that is against the spirit of good sportsmanship.”
Planet Rugby takes a look at some of these incidents.
Dylan Hartley – 2013
Former England hooker Dylan Hartley was red-carded during the 2013 Premiership final after allegedly calling referee Wayne Barnes a “f****** cheat”.
Hartley has always maintained that his comments were not directed at Barnes, but he was still hit with an 11-week ban regardless. He would subsequently miss the 2013 British and Irish Lions series in Australia.
Agustin Creevy – 2022
London Irish and Argentina hooker Agustin Creevy received a one-week ban last year after he was cited for pulling Eben Etzebeth’s hair.
The independent disciplinary judged that Creevy’s actions were to be the low-end of World Rugby’s sanctions. Two weeks was deemed to be the appropriate entry point. His good disciplinary record and his acceptance of guilty meant it was reduced by a week.
Chris Ashton – 2011
Another hair-raising incident.
In 2011, Chris Ashton picked up a four-week suspension for pulling Samoan wing Alesana Tuilagi into touch by his hair.
His actions sparked a fight in the fiery East Midlands derby. Tuilagi and Ashton’s teammate Tom Wood were both red-carded. The pair did not get banned for their actions.
Although Ashton escaped punishment in the game, he was slapped with a £500 fine on top of his four-week ban.
Ludovic Radosavljevic – 2021
One of the heftier bans, and rightly so.
In 2021, Provence scrum-half Ludovic Radosavljevic was banned for 26 weeks. His ban came after he racially abused Cameroonian winger Christian Ambadiang in a Pro D2 match.
Radosavljevic called Ambadiang “banana eater”. The scrum-half admitted wrongdoing in his disciplinary hearing and apologised for his actions.
He subsequently had his 52-week ban cut in half, as he also had a clean disciplinary record before his slur.
Mathieu Bastareaud – 2019
Former France centre Mathieu Bastareaud got off far lighter for his homophobic slur in 2018.
He was cited for an incident during his side’s 36-0 European Champions Cup clash with Benetton Treviso, appearing to call Sebastian Negri a “f***ing f****t” during the match.
While many expected Bastareaud to get a hefty ban, the committee judged the offence was at the low end of World Rugby’s sanctions. He got a six-week suspension, which was halved after a guilty plea.
Joe Marler – 2016
In 2016, Joe Marler was banned for two matches and fined £20,000 after he called the Wales prop Samson Lee “Gypsy boy” during the Six Nations.
Joe Marler – 2020
One of Marler’s more infamous suspensions.
Back in 2020, the England prop was banned for ten weeks for grabbing Alun Wyn Jones’ genitals during a Six Nations match.
Marler was cited for his actions and accepted in his hearing that he had committed an act of foul play. The disciplinary committee upheld the citing and found that it had a low-end entry point of 12 weeks.
He had his suspension reduced by three weeks to take into account good character and remorse. But it was increased by one week due to his recent disciplinary record.
Joe Marler – 2022
Last one on Marler. Late last year, he accepted a charge of conduct prejudicial to rugby after remarks towards Jake Heenan’s mother.
Marler was overheard saying to Heenan: “I’m clearly not your brother, am I? There’s no way I’m from the same mother as you. Your mum’s a f***** wh***.”
He was handed a six-week ban, four of which suspended, for his comments. The extra four-week suspension will be activated should the England prop commit a similar offence before the following season.
Harry Williams – 2019
In 2019, referee Barnes issued a red card to Harry Williams while the prop was not even on the pitch.
The Exeter Chiefs front-rower had been substituted following a head injury but dashed from the technical area to join in a mass brawl.
Barnes deemed Williams’ actions to be “not acceptable” and issued him with a red card. He later faced a disciplinary panel, which upheld Barnes’ decision and banned the tighthead for two weeks.
Niall Annett – 2022
Hooker Niall Annett joined Bath ahead of the 2022/23 season and was banned for two weeks before making his debut for the side.
Referee Tom Foley dismissed Annett in the 37th minute of the West Country derby between Bath and Bristol in September last year.
The hooker had got involved in a melee after Luke Morahan scored a try for Bristol. While keeping warm behind Bath’s try-line, Annett ran in to get involved in the melee grabbing Bristol’s Joe Joyce by the shirt.
“I decided that the actions of Bath 16 [Annett], although not serious in themselves, were unwarranted and unnecessary from a substitute and therefore decided that a red card was the most appropriate course of action,” Foley wrote in his report of the incident.
Nico Lee – 2019
One of the more disgusting entries on this list. Former Cheetahs centre Nico Lee received a 13-week ban after he “cleared the contents of his nose” on to an opposition player’s face.
The centre was cited following the incident, which happened during South Africa-based Cheetahs’ PRO14 game against Connacht.
The disciplinary committee concluded that Lee had committed an intentional act of foul play.
The panel criticised the centre with the following statement: “The player’s actions are an act of foul play. They have no place in the game.
“This is not a case of over-exuberance, or an act which is within the rules of the game going awry. It follows that by its nature this act is one that is deserving of punishment. It is contrary to the spirit of sport. It’s difficult to imagine how an act of foul play of this sort could be worse, save for repeated acts or where actual injury is caused.”
READ MORE: WATCH: Leicester Tigers kick long to own player in BIZARRE try against Bath
The article Unsportsmanlike: Eleven bans for actions deemed ‘against the spirit of good sportsmanship’ in rugby appeared first on Planetrugby.com.
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