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Unsurprisingly, England captain Owen Farrell has been ruled out of the Saracens’ Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals against Leinster at Aviva Stadium on Saturday week. as a result of the sanction of five matches that has suffered. Realistically, it was the least he could have received.
Farrell was thrown out for the first time in his career after catching 18-year-old replacement for the Wasps, middle Charlie Atkinson, with a swinging arm and learned his fate in a virtual disciplinary hearing Tuesday night that lasted nearly four hours.
No one could disagree with the verdict of the three-man independent disciplinary panel chaired by Mike Hamlin, which ruled that the swing of Farrell’s forearm on Atkinson’s head was “reckless”, “totally unacceptable” and worthy of an entry point. 10-match high-ranking. .
This was cut down to five games, due to mitigating factors, including player remorse (“I know this was bad,” he told referee Christophe Ridley before being shown a red card) and a relatively clean disciplinary record that previously only had submitted one. two-week suspension in 2016.
Farrell will also miss the Champions Cup semi-finals if the Saracens defeat Leinster, although he would be available for the final and England’s fall program. Moving on, however, the critical point here is that with the help of his club and international coaches Mark McCall and Eddie Jones, Farrell improves a tackle technique that has so far been quite high.
It certainly helped Farrell’s case that both McCall and Jones witnessed character on his behalf, along with a representative from a charity who has worked closely with the player.
Unfortunately, there has been very little indication to date from McCall or Jones that Farrell has a problem with the height of his tackles at times. In fact, under the leadership of Jones and the Farrell captaincy, inflicting “absolute brutality” has become an objectionable mantra of this English team since their defeat in the 2019 World Cup final both in public and within the games. limits of your own configuration.
Speaking ahead of his first Six Nations game in France this year, Jones commented: “The game is violent, isn’t it? You decide to play the game. It is a brutal and physically aggressive game. We saw in the World Cup final how important aggression is. It’s going to be the same on Sunday. I apologize if it has been misinterpreted.
“France can expect absolute brutality from England, we are going out to make sure they understand what test rugby is. It’s about being brutal, it’s about being physical and it’s about dominating the set. “
Maybe it’s time for Jones, Farrell, and England to take it down and tone it down.
In Farrell’s absence, the Saracens have the option of moving Alex Goode from side to half against Leinster, or pinning their hopes on Manu Vunipola, England’s U-20 World Cup half who is Mako and Billy’s cousin.
Goode played as an outhalf in the Saracens’ first game after blocking when they lost to Bath, but Vunipola, 20, started the big wins over Harlequins, landing two of six kicks, and Gloucester, when he kicked five of six.
“[We have] two options: Manu to start or Alex Goode, ”McCall admitted in the wake of Farrell’s red card, and even before the disciplinary hearing. “That is the choice we have to make. I have full confidence with everything that Manu has faced during these eight or nine months, I have prepared him for these moments and we believe that he is ready.
The Saracens are likely to rest most of their avant-garde from their mindless matches away from Sale on Wednesday and Exeter at home next Saturday, and the Champions Cup champs had been doing well until Farrell’s red card contributed to his loss to the Wasps, having recorded three bonus points. win on the rebound.
They will remain a dangerous opponent for Leinster in what is a repeat of the 2019 final at St James’ Park in Newcastle, when Farrell scored 10 points in a 20-10 win from the three-time winners. With their us versus the world mentality, they delight when they get cornered and will play like there is no tomorrow, because in terms of the 2019-20 season there will be no tomorrow anyway if they lose.
However, Farrell’s loss is compounded by some significant deviations from the club’s decline on foot of two point deductions amounting to 105 points for breaches of Premiership salary cap regulations.
Notably, Australian behemoth Will Skelton has moved to La Rochelle in the Top 14, while his second-row partner in that final against Leinster, George Kruis, has joined Panasonic Wild Knights in Japan.
Ben Spencer, their starting scrum half at Newcastle, who was also England’s ‘9’ substitute in the World Cup final, has joined Bath, while their talented 22-year-old winger Ben Earl has joined the Bristol Bears on loan for one year.
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