It has been confirmed in the last few moments that New Zealand's Sam Cane and Malakai Fekitoa have been cited for "allegedly tackling an opponent dangerously" in Saturday's victory over Ireland.
Cane's high tackle on Robbie Henshaw left the Leinster centre on a stretcher, with referee Jaco Peyper deeming the offence worthy of nothing more than a penalty. Here's the incident:
Fekitoa - the scorer of the third try - has also been cited, for this extremely high tackle on Simon Zebo. Fekitoa did see yellow, but given that he made zero attempt to tackle Zebo properly, many believe that he should have seen red.
Here's the incident:
Fekitoa goes in the bin for a high tackle on Zebo. https://t.co/nMJpcNgAEX
— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) November 19, 2016
Both have now been cited, and may now face a further suspension. The decision to cite them seems more in line with World Rugby's missives ahead of the Autumn series. They released a statement to say that
In a further effort to eliminate dangerous or reckless contact with players' heads, World Rugby has issued a reminder to elite referees ahead of the upcoming November internationals instructing them to be especially vigilant in this area.
Referees have been told to be strict when it comes to tackles, charges, strikes or kicks that make contact above the shoulder line and to favour firm sanctions for offenders, up to and including red cards for severe examples.
Jaco Peyper failed to follow that line against Ireland, and the fact that both Cane and Fekitoa have been cited would confirm that.
Not that it's of much use to Ireland now.
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