Owen Farrell learns the length of his suspension after being sent off for a bad tackle in Wales by Thane Basham. Photo: Getty Images
Owen Farrell learns of his World Cup fate at a disciplinary hearing on Tuesday after being sent off in the England 19:17 win at Twickenham against Wales.
< p>On a disastrous day for Steve Borthwick's team, scrum-half Jack van Purtvliet suffered a serious ankle injury and three other England players were shown yellow cards.
But Borthwick's biggest concern will be the outcome of Farrell's virtual hearing in Tuesday. Farrell was sent off for a tackle on Thane Basham, and the England captain appeared to have his arm tucked into the back row's face with his shoulder. Basham did not return to the game after the tackle.
The entry-level penalty for such a tackle is six weeks, although Farrell received a four-week ban back in January for a similar tackle. In this case, Farrell's ban was reduced to three weeks after he attended Tackle School, however the player cannot do so twice.
Had Farrell been banned for six weeks, he would have missed England's entire World Cup billiards campaign, while a four-week suspension would have meant he was out of the first two games, against Argentina and Japan. Matches are the most difficult in the billiard stage of England. Ellis Genge and Courtney Lowes are likely to replace Farrell as captain, with the midfielder almost certain to miss the remaining warm-up games against Ireland and Fiji.
Letter to Mail on Sunday, Wales Midfielder Dan Biggar admitted he was «surprised» that Farrell and Freddie Steward — another England international to receive a yellow card — were not sent off immediately. Although with the TMO bunker system referees will only wave a red card for egregious acts of foul play.
«I really like Owen Farrell as a guy, but I wasn't going to let him talk to me like he did last night in Twickenham, which is why we had a fight,» Biggar wrote. «I don't have a problem with Owen — we were teammates with the Lions, but he made it personal by attacking me in the second half at Twickenham.
«Stop complaining,» was what Farrell said in my direction right after hitting Thane Basham hard. I thought it was clearly a red card and was just giving my opinion.
“I told Farrell that people were allowed to tease him. He is not above everyone. Owen is a competitive guy like me and it was a spontaneous incident.
“I was very surprised that Farrell and Freddie Steward were not removed immediately. Both received yellow cards, but Owen's card was upgraded to red due to the new television bunker system.»
Owen Farrell's possible heartbreak at the World Cup
Speaking of Farrell's dismissal, Borthwick said: «I'm sure it will assessed and will undergo disciplinary proceedings. I'll wait and see what comes of it. Now it would be wrong for me to comment on a separate incident. We will deal with the facts of the situation.”
Wales manager Warren Gatland agreed with the decision and added that he hoped Farrell would not be sidelined for an extended period of time.
>“It was the right decision that day. I hope he doesn't get too long a ban for Owen, you need someone like him in the game,» Gatland said. “He will be a big loss for England if he does have a long ban. Given his previous experience, I'm not too sure what's going to happen with this one, fingers crossed, it won't be long for him.»
England team-mate George Ford, who would most likely start the tournament on the fly-half, Farrell said afterwards: «He's not a player who would intentionally want to do that. We will support him, he is our captain and our leader, and he will return.”
Brian Moore's verdict. Farrell red card: what happened and what World Cup games could he have missed?
Ben Coles
Owen Farrell's red card against Wales means the England captain is set to be suspended in connection with the start of the Rugby World Cup campaign in England.
How did that happen?
Farrell made head contact with Thane Basham in a dangerous tackle 63 minutes into the match at Twickenham. Basham, who was trying to elude Jamie George's capture, hit Farrell in the jaw with a shoulder. Farrell also failed to grab his hands on contact.
The incident sparked a verbal altercation between Farrell and Welsh midfielder Dan Biggar as replays of the tackle were shown on the big screen. , which could jeopardize England's plans for the World Cup. Was it red?
Originally missed by officials on the live broadcast, TMO's Brian McNeice of Ireland brought the incident to the attention of Georgian referee Nicky Amashukeli.
After watching the replay on Prime Video, commentator Sam Warburton immediately said: “Oh my god. , he's gone.”
The referee recognized a clear head contact and awarded Farrell a yellow card on the field, informing the England captain that it was a clear tackle. Nika Amashukeli added that the incident would involve the newly introduced TMO bunker, which could be upgraded to a red card within a 10-minute window.
What turned the card red was the immediate lack of softening. Basham did not lose his height or change direction before the contact. Farrell's shoulder was also twisted and there was no clear taping, making him a clear red card.
Does he have any earlier?
Farrell was suspended three times for dangerous tackles.
He received a two-week suspension for tackled Wasps' Dan Robson in the Champions Cup semi-final back in 2016.
The second infraction came in 2020 while playing for the Saracens against the Wasps when he was suspended for five weeks for a dangerous tackle on Charlie Atkinson. The Disciplinary Commission found that Farrell's actions were reckless and unintentional, adding that Farrell made «completely unacceptable neck/head contact.»
Most recently, Farrell was suspended for a dangerous tackle in January 2023 following an incident while playing for the Saracens against Gloucester when he made head contact with Jack Clement. The midfielder received a four-match ban, reduced to three weeks, after Farrell went through World Rugby's Coach Intervention Program to help correct a tackle technique known as «tackle school». As a result, he was available for England's first Six Nations game against Scotland.
What ban will he get?
Farrell cannot attend tackle school twice in the same year. His previous suspension earlier this year will also count towards his mitigation.
If the starting point for Farrell's offense is the same as in January — six weeks — assuming the England captain pleads guilty, as well as taking into account other factors that would normally result in a reduced suspension such as «good behavior on hearing,» Farrell could face a suspension of four, possibly five weeks. This would have resulted in him missing the rest of the England warm-up matches and the start of the Rugby World Cup campaign.
, when Farrell's yellow card was upgraded to red. Credit: PA/David Davies What games could he have missed?
England played warm-up matches against Ireland in Dublin and Fiji at Twickenham ahead of the Rugby World Cup. Their first Group D game against Argentina will take place on September 9.
Farrell will most likely miss all three games. If the suspension lasts four weeks, he will also miss England's game against Japan on 17 September. If it lasts five weeks, he will also miss England's game against Chile on 23 September.
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