Share

England centre cited over high tackle against USA

Tokyo - England's Piers Francis was cited for foul play on Friday after a tackle that left USA fullback Will Hooley concussed at the Rugby World Cup.

Francis will appear before a three-member independent judicial committee in Tokyo, following England's 45-7 win over the Eagles in Kobe on Thursday.

The centre made the tackle from the opening kick-off.

His citing comes after Australia's Reece Hodge and Rey Lee-Lo of Samoa both received three-match bans for high tackles, which are under severe scrutiny at Japan 2019.

John Quill has also been cited for a late shot on England captain Owen Farrell in the same game that saw the US flanker receive the first red card of this World Cup.

World Rugby has introduced a new framework for policing high tackles, and the governing body took the unusual step of criticising refereeing standards after the tournament's first weekend.

England coach Eddie Jones, asked after the match about Francis's tackle on Hooley, said they would "take whatever is handed out" by disciplinary chiefs.

Meanwhile, England fullback Elliot Daly, speaking to reporters on Friday, said: "It hasn't changed that much in my eyes, you want to make good tackles, that's all you really want to do."

"Sometimes you slip up and you'll get deemed (to have made a) high tackle now."

"It's safer for the game and to be honest any rule that comes in you have to abide by it and that's obviously for the safety of us and everyone around us," he added.

Wallaby wing Hodge, like Francis, escaped on-field action for a high tackle on Fiji's Paceli Yato during Australia's opening 39-21 Pool D win in Sapporo on Saturday.

But Hodge was subsequently banned after being cited, with Clive Woodward, England's 2003 World Cup-winning coach, expecting similar treatment for Francis.

"I am sure Francis will be cited and, with the precedent having been set, he will get a three-match ban," Woodward wrote in his Daily Mail column before the citing was announced.

"It's a bit unsatisfactory.

"The ugly assault on Owen Farrell by John Quill late in the second half is why we have red cards."

Woodward added: "This is the point I have been trying to make about the Reece Hodge incident last week... It was not a challenge that deserves a three-match ban.

"However, World Rugby, by making an example of Hodge, have now made it difficult not to punish any remotely similar incident.

"They have set the bar unrealistically high."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should the Proteas pick Faf du Plessis for the T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States in June?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Faf still has a lot to give ...
58% - 7 votes
No! It's time to move on ...
42% - 5 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE