Rugby union’s disciplinary bodies have been dealing with dangerous foul play harshly, as is evidenced by last week’s finalization of a 24-week suspension of French inside back Julian Dupuy for eye-gouging in a Heineken Cup match in December. There is certainly nothing wrong with such strict treatment. Foul play hurts the image and appeal of rugby union and endangers players, and major penalties for it will hopefully drive it from the sport.
A less gruesome incident in a Heineken Cup match last week, however, reminds us that the next area of “dirty” play meriting disciplinary attention may be a much less violent one.
Defending Heineken Cup champions Leinster picked up a bonus-point win over Brive Saturday by a comfortable 27-10 margin, but it wasn’t easy going all the way through. In the 37th minute, Leinster were ahead only 7-0 when center Gordon D’Arcy chipped ahead near the sideline. His kick was likely a bit too long as it was easily caught on the full for a mark by the opposition … but not before D’Arcy was floored face-first after bumping into the arm of a Brive player whie pursuing his kick.
A penalty kick was awarded to Leinster with the choice to be taken from either the spot where the kick was taken or where it landed, as is appropriate for a late tackle or charge on a kicker. The only problem was that, as a frustrated Brive captain indicated in vain, it didn’t look much like anyone actually tried to stop D’arcy. He may have touched an arm, but … well, we’ll let the words of a Setanta Sports television commentator, who was covering the match for the Irish network, speak for themselves: “They’ve been done. They’ve been conned by experienced Mr. D’Arcy there.”
Now, we can’t read D’Arcy’s mind, but discussion on a Leinster supporter forum compared him to Michael Phelps.
One might argue that a little bit of gamesmanshaip to draw a penalty is part of the sport, and that it doesn’t hurt an opposition player the way eye-gouging and other serious offenses do. On the other hand, though, one might argue that penalty “simulation” might need the type of increased attention from disciplinary bodies that it is beginning to receive in soccer/football.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t track down footage of the D’Arcy incident available online for you, but we can offer a glimpse of what rugby union could start to look like if simulated foul play isn’t dealt with proactively:
To be fair, the Leinster-Brive Match wasn’t all flops. Here are some more exciting moments from the match to restore your faith in the sport:
