Rory Sidey gets 3 weeks

[Burgs]

There is head contact with every second tackle, that's a lot different to head first contact and that didn't happen.
My viewing of the footage is that he hit flat on his back rather than head, or even shoulders, contacting first.
You don't have to have made head first contact to get knocked out.
As I said originally for my point of view, no doubt a Yellow for an ugly tackle, but anything further is pathetic, regardless of the injury status of the tackled player.
What was happening to Bam in that ruck that went unnoticed live and under review had far greater potential for serious injury to the neck than the tackle did.

[BeeJay]

A red card inside the first 20 mins is handing a loss to the team straight away. Maybe a week or 2 on top of that, but three? Excessive.

By the way, what was stopping the citing commissioner pulling up Fairbanks?

[welshrugbyfan]

No professional player would leave the ground to go to hospital if he was faking an injury.

The kid messed up. Don't lift players without looking out for their safety when you bring them back down, simple.

Imagine if the shoe was on the other foot?

We'd all be out for blood and red cards.

[GIGS20]

Well said, it's a harsh call, but the tackle was illegal. I still say sidey's paying for Fairbanks' inaccuracy

[The InnFORCEr]

No professional player would leave the ground to go to hospital if he was faking an injury.

The kid messed up. Don't lift players without looking out for their safety when you bring them back down, simple.

Imagine if the shoe was on the other foot?

We'd all be out for blood and red cards.

No doubt we would be after a red card, but the extra weeks on top is pretty harsh.

Are red cards needed when such harsh after match penalties are imposed??

[palitu]

yeah, not sure about a 3 match penalty.

The game was given away AND 3 matches is a bit much. Im interested in how fairbanks isn't cited or penalised either? seems a bit weird that there is nothing about him.

[welshrugbyfan]

No doubt we would be after a red card, but the extra weeks on top is pretty harsh.

Are red cards needed when such harsh after match penalties are imposed??

Straight red usually always results in some after match suspension.

Two yellows resulting in a red usually don't.

One week would have been sufficient for Sidey, three seems harsh.

[antiussentiment]

after coming home and watching the game again on fox. i'm surprised at the 3 weeks. i really thought it would have been more.

i also thought the "assisting player" may have gotten some static, i'm glad he did not.

it's the worst tackle i can remember seeing for a while.

[James]

No professional player would leave the ground to go to hospital if he was faking an injury.

Re-phrase: Overemphasizing it. If there was a book up I would put a vmil on him playing this weekend.

[Burgs]

Temptation there Bookies!

[Happy]

I have no issue with reckless lifting tackles being penalised, but his actions here were clumsy, not malicious.

yes but even if it was not malicious the rules are clear on spear tackles and how you must bring the player to the ground.

No one tackles anyone with the intent on delivering a spear tackle, it just ends up that way due to factors such as strength, speed, size, direction and before you know it you have someone upside down pointing head first to the ground.From this point the rules are very clear to you - bring them to the ground safely!!

How would you go ref'ing each incident trying to decide whether it was malicious or not ?

[Hansie]

What gets my goat are the free kicks and penalties for infringements that have absolutely no impact on the game. Crooked throw in lineouts when opposition team does not even compete. Shark's winger doing a sensational Oscar winning dive when coming into contact with Cummins, Offside 70 meters from a ruck during a pick and go.

Sidey's tackle was a rush of blood and he is the example at the beginning of the season to all players - don't lift past the horizontal in the tackle. A better technique is to get under the ball carrier,( his feet are off the ground at point of contact anyway) put on the leg drive and drive the man back, rather than lift.

Shark's 4th try should never have been awarded, I am sure there was shark's knock forward at the ruck. Generally a poor performance by the ref.

Why was Fairbrother benched - he had it over the beast?

[Happy]

i am keen to see ecky's report on the ref

[robyn <3]

That's total bull. I'm so confused how I see that so totally differently to the ref and the judiciary. What is the definition of a spear tackle by the IRB? All I see is his shoulder blades and upper back that make first contact with the ground, which, yeah, is a rough tackle but not THAT bad?

I'm so confused I asked google and found http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugb...al/4759250.stm Nigel Owens reckons "A spear tackle is when you lift an opponent in the air, turn him upside down whilst in the air and force him or drop him to the ground head first." Sidey so turned him upside down, but he didn't drop him, or land on his head. One of three sins.

[palitu]

That's total bull. I'm so confused how I see that so totally differently to the ref and the judiciary. What is the definition of a spear tackle by the IRB? All I see is his shoulder blades and upper back that make first contact with the ground, which, yeah, is a rough tackle but not THAT bad?

I'm so confused I asked google and found http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugb...al/4759250.stm Nigel Owens reckons "A spear tackle is when you lift an opponent in the air, turn him upside down whilst in the air and force him or drop him to the ground head first." Sidey so turned him upside down, but he didn't drop him, or land on his head. One of three sins.

it is actually 2 of three sins Robyn,

• past 90 (and well past at that)
• and whilst he didn't drop him, they didn't place him gently, which is just as bad if not worse, as you then have to players falling onto him making the tackle worse.