Here are the latest rugby headlines on Wednesday, September 27.
Player who put Dupont in hospital gets huge ban
Namibia’s Johan Deysel has been banned for six matches after his dangerous tackle which put Antoine Dupont’s World Cup in jeopardy. During an independent disciplinary committee hearing on Monday, the player accepted that foul play had occurred and that the offence warranted a red card.
Having considered all the available evidence, Adam Casselden SC (Australia), joined by former international referees Donal Courtney (Ireland) and Juan Pablo Spirandelli (Argentina), categorised the act of foul play as “being at the top end of the scale of seriousness of offending, having regard to the degree of recklessness involved in the offending, the vulnerability of the victim player and the significant injury to him”.
The panel said they considered mitigating factors, including admission of foul play and correctness of the red card at the first opportunity, his disciplinary record and apology to the player, and reduced their sanction y 50% accordingly, landing on the six-game ban as their final sanction. Deysel has agreed to take part in World Rugby’s coaching intervention programme, commonly referred to as tackle school, to substitute the final match of the sanction.
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France star Dupont set for quarter final
While Johan Deysel was facing justice, France’s forwards coach William Servat has indicated that the world’s best player is set to make a remarkable recovery. Despite suffering a fractured cheekbone in last Thursday’s 96-0 win over Namibia, which required surgery, Antonine Dupont is set to return to training in just a few days’ time.
Servat said: “The operation went well, he is resting. He will be back training on Sunday. Friday and Saturday are days off for us, he will have time to return in that period of time. I have no doubt about his ability to play in the quarter-final.” The quarter-finals take place on the weekend of October 14 and 15.
New Zealand players come to blows in training
The All Blacks have admitted tempers have flared during training this week with players getting physical and “hot headed”. But those within the New Zealand camp insist it’s nothing to worry about. Quite the opposite, in fact. Flanker Dalton Papali’i said some of the players had become “hot-headed” during training sessions since New Zealand’s last match more than 10 days ago.
Hooker Codie Taylor added: “It’s always the same old faces, it’s usually a good sign. There’s good niggle and over-the-top niggle, and I think we’ve had a bit of both at times.”
Forwards coach Jason Ryan said there had been “some good physical exchanges”. “I blew the whistle a couple more times than I usually do, but it’s a good sign, it’s all put in the right place,” he said.
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Japan respond to Eddie Jones rumours
Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU) have responded to reports claiming Australia head coach Eddie Jones interviewed for the vacant Japan job in the build-up to the World Cup.
Jones himself has played down those rumours, while the JRFU have now released a statement refusing to comment on individuals during their hiring process. “We have a policy that we won’t disclose any information about candidates (any name of an individual or selection status) until we finalise the announcement of the new head coach,” a JRFU spokesperson told Kyodo News.
