Rugby News
Video: Was this monster tackle worth a five-week ban?
London Irish’s Chris Hala'ufia copped a five-week ban for this tackle on London Welsh’s Seb Jewell at the weekend, but can he feel hard done by?
There’s no doubting that it was a ferocious hit by the London Irish number eight, who timed the tackle to perfection to catch Jewell as he tried to break the gain line in midfield.
The issue appears to be the way Hala'ufia grounded Jewell after making the tackle as Jewell’s legs were flailing in the air and he appeared to land awkwardly on his neck, so it is up for debate whether or not Hala'ufia brought him to ground safely.
After consultation with his touch judge, the referee decided to brandish a red card, a decision which shocked the London Irish captain and Hala'ufia himself, who still had the decency to shake Jewell’s hand after being given his marching orders.
So should Hala'ufia feel hard done by or was the ref right to send him off?
Have a look in the video above and judge for yourself.
Hat-tip: RugbyDump
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Kop06/12/2012 1:36 pm #9 1Right decision to send him off. Not the worst spear tackle you'll see, but the game needs to try and get rid of the tackle; red cards and suspensions are the way to do it. No point in waiting for someone to get a broken neck before action is taken. - ReportHaggis06/12/2012 1:54 pm #1 6It's not a red card. It's a penalty yellow card. It was a dangerous tackle not a tip tackle and certainly not a spear tackle. JP Doyle is flashing cards like there's no tomorrow at the moment.
- ReportPunter07/12/2012 12:31 pm #2 0That is clearly a spear tackle and is a serious red card offence. Once the player's legs are above horizontal, the onus is on the tackler to land the tackled player safely. This tackle is even worse than that interpretation, as the tackled player lands on his head. The ref has made the right decision. If the player had broken his neck ... which is possible in this incident, you would be asking for a longer ban than 5 weeks.
