Glaws vs Sarries

[andermt]

Karl Dickson strikes again.

Ignores his TMO request and ignores a Farrell shoulder to the head. Didn’t watch the match but read loads of comments, even some Sarries fans saying he shouldn’t have been on the pitch to score the drop goal that won them the game.
Sounds like Dickson didn’t know the laws. Making a comment about too many phases before which was wrong as match hadn’t restarted. The twitter interaction between Jim Hamilton and Nigel Owen’s is amusing.

What’s the chance Farrell gets cited this close to the 6nations, I’ll be surprised if he does more than if he doesn’t.

[Neils]

The outcry and press reporting must get him cited. Plus with a very clear TMO recommendation from the usually inept Clare H if it is not picked up by her citing colleague there will be more questions. Nice has confirmed that no such ruling as applied by Dickson exists.

However the mass of charity work done by Saint Owne will probably wipe a ban out completely!

[NellyWellyWaspy]

I know that the refs have formed a self interest, self help group, but the refs really don't do themselves any favours when mistakes (let's be kind and call it a mistake, as opposed to deliberate) like this happen.

Running through the process. There was contact with the head. I have seen some cheats apologists say it was the chest. No. It was the head. What hit the head? The leading shoulder. Now, that alone is bad posture. Coming from that side, Farrell should have made contact with his left shoulder, not his right.

Did the ball player dip or fall in to the contact? No, or not significantly. Was Farrell upright or bent to make the tackle? Bent, but nowhere near enough. A typical tackle we see week in week out made by a 10. Everything about Farrell's technique was wrong.

Was it at speed, high force, high degree of danger? Yes. Red card. A 4 week ban, reduced to 2 weeks because he has volunteered to help grannies cross the road for a day. The two weeks suspended because he is an awfully nice guy and hasn't made a red card tackle like this in the last 4 weeks. Oh, and nominate him for an OBE because he plays for Sarries at such a low salary, just so they can stay within the cap.

Dickson is what he is. Generally a good ref, bags of experience, who has regular and inexplicable brain farts. He knows it, the RFU know it. His fellow refs know it. The commentators know it. The players know it. We know it. Does that mean he shouldn't ref at this level? Maybe. Certainly demotion to running the line for a season or two. Will that happen? Not a chance.

At this point, do I care? No. The RFU are facing legal action over head injuries. They will claim they are 'doing something'. Lawyers just have to show clips like this to prove they are not doing what they say they are.

I appreciate that you all say the RFU is the only game in town, but they are run by utterly incompetent old farts, and if they were a genuinely commercial enterprise, they would have gone under years ago.

[mike909]

A game I did watch. It was spoiled for the neutral (well - sort of neutral supporting Glaws on the day...) by a reffing performance that was plain wrong in the case of Farrell and inconsistent especially IRO the EA's offside every defensive breakdown.

NWW is 100% correct on the incident

Reading both the IRB missive on the breakdown suggests that it ought to be easy enough to police if the refs decide to apply the Laws. And offside is easy enough  - especially if you had a "VAR" looking at it so the ref can look at the tackle area more.

A comment on the EA's star packed team.....made to look quite hurried and ordinary at times by a Glaws team lacking a load of first choices. OF was anonymous - red card excepted - and showed why he ought not to be anywhere near the England team.

But as others suggest - post game citing, 4 week ban reduced because he's so sorry. Just like he was when he decked Charlie from behind after running 10m to do the deed, deliberately....A git.

[FishingWasp]

I watched the game and could not believe that Dixon played on without reviewing after Hodnet had said to him foul play.
Equally the commentary team said it must surely be looked at. Hodnet however made the mistake of saying that it was no 10 Farrel. Hence the decision to play on??. If he's cited, which I doubt, he should, given his history of the same offence get a ban well into the 6 nations, but there's the rub.
Until that incident I had thought Dixon (who I generally respect) had been poor and been a little generous to Saracens at just about every 50/50, but that may just be my dislike of the EAs.
Glos supporters must be fuming that Shoulder boy scored the drop goal to decide the match when he should have been off the pitch with, at least a yellow, and probably a red card.

[Rossm]

https://twitter.com/i/status/1611475671079092224

Red card - Yes.

Will he get cited - No.

[backdoc]

It is corruption to let the well known [and often England] players off the hook like this.

Someone needs to tell that to the referees in plain English.

And while they are at it, have a word with McCall.

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Thanks for the link Ross.

First comment OF he couldn't lower!!! As if that makes it a head shot OK.

OF isn't even look at where he's going, the man is reckless.

[bigad82]

This might be the new England coaching set up blessing in disguise.
He stinks the place out at international level.

[Shugs]

Farrell’s tackle technique is poor. It’s proven. It’s known. Quite apart from the red card Dickson had spent far too long previously explaining to OF decisions far too many times than he would for probably anyone else. The cheats get different treatment to others for some reason. A core of their players Vunipola x 2, George, Farrell, Daly really don’t think they should ever be penalised and some refs have become too apologetic to them when they do ping them.

[coddy]

Farrell is no where near as good a Fly Half as Marcus Smith and surely as he has a poor tackle technique,  no real pace, no side step or isn't big enough to burst through tackles how can he be considered a International Inside Centre?

Next month we'll see if Borthwick has the minerals to cut him loose.

[JF]

He'll get a ban for ten minutes, which will be halved because he'll day sorry. They will ignore the previous 925 similar incidents and tell him not to be a naughty boy again.

He is a liability. If he hasn't learned how to tackle this far into his career he should be banned until he learns. If he hss learned hoe to tackle but chooses to assault his opponent contrary to the laws of the game and the laws of the land he should be kicked out of the game. Or maybe that should be head-butted out of the game.

[backdoc]

I would like to see the term 'test animal' left in the 20th century.
It reeks of 'my type of player' even if it did come from Geech.

[baldpaul101]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/64210151

He has been cited

[Rifleman Harris]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/64210151

He has been cited

How many weeks is it to the 6N?  That is the length of ban he is going to get.