Owen Farrell will miss England’s first two games at the start of the Rugby World Cup. An independent disciplinary committee suspended the England captain on Tuesday night for four matches after World Rugby’s appeal was upheld, the Rugby Football Union has announced. Farrell will miss the World Cup games against Argentina and Japan.
Farrell faced his second disciplinary hearing on Tuesday at the conclusion of a drawn-out saga that led to questions over the review system’s credibility after his red card was overturned. The England captain was shown a yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Wales’s Taine Basham this month but was sent off following the bunker review.
When Farrell’s red card was overturned last week, the player welfare lobby group Progressive Rugby said that the decision had “critically undermined the newly introduced bunker process before a global tournament and eroded confidence in the game’s judicial process”. World Rugby subsequently appealed against the initial verdict.
In a statement after the appeal hearing on Tuesday night, the RFU said the appeal committee ruled that “no mitigation can be applied to a tackle that is ‘always illegal’” and therefore ruled that “the disciplinary committee’s decision to downgrade the red card to a yellow card had been manifestly wrong, which led to the disciplinary committee’s decision being overturned, the appeal brought by World Rugby being allowed, and the red card upheld”.
The RFU added: “Taking all considerations into account, including the player’s acceptance of foul play, clear demonstration of remorse and his good character, the committee agreed a four-match suspension. The appeal committee accepted submissions on behalf of the player that the Ireland v England match on 19 August 2023, for which the player was voluntarily stood down would be included as part of the sanction.”
Having sat out the Ireland victory in Dublin last week, Farrell will now miss England’s final warmup game, against Fiji on Saturday, and his side’s first two World Cup games against Argentina on 9 September and Japan on 17 September.
Billy Vunipola’s hearing has been scheduled straight after Farrell’s though the result is expected to be announced on Wednesday morning. Vunipola received his red card against Ireland and is appearing in front of a panel chaired by the Scottish KC Roddy Dunlop KC, as well as the former Scottish international coach Frank Hadden and the former Wales international Jamie Corsi.
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