Italy prop Riccioni gets 2-week ban for sideline red card in Nations Championship rugby test

SYDNEY (AP) — Italy prop Marco Riccioni has been suspended for two weeks after being found guilty of unsportsmanlike conduct in his team’s 57-10 loss to Australia in last Saturday’s Nations Championship rugby test.

Riccioni received a red card in the 66th minute of the match at Perth, Western Australia. He had already been replaced when he got involved in a wrestle between players spilled from the field into the technical area and knocked some Italy support staff off their chairs.

The tournament’s Foul Play Review committee on Wednesday announced the suspension, the third involving Italy in two weeks.

The committee said the foul play could have merited a four-week suspension but it was reduced to two because of Riccioni’s admission of guilt and his previous disciplinary record.

Riccioni, who will miss two matches in August for Perpignan in France’s Top 14 league, is the third Italian player or coach to be suspended on the Nations Championship tour.

Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada had his two-match suspension reduced to one last week after facing a misconduct hearing in regard to referee criticism following Italy’s 47-17 loss to New Zealand on July 11.

And Italy lock Niccolo Cannone was suspended for four weeks after being sent off for head-butting in the loss to the All Blacks at Wellington.

Italy lost its first three games in the Nations Championship, with the defeats in Australia and New Zealand following a 27-10 loss to Japan in Tokyo on July 4.

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CHICAGO (AP) — The Detroit Tigers placed right-hander Jack Flaherty on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday with right flexor inflammation.

Flaherty pitched four innings in Monday night’s 8-6 victory at the Chicago Cubs. He allowed three runs and four hits.

The 30-year-old Flaherty is 3-8 with a 4.59 ERA in 19 starts this season. He finalized a $35 million, two-year contract with Detroit in February 2025.

“It wasn’t a clear-cut IL when we woke up this morning, and then as the day went on and the more (opinions) we got, the more we realized he wasn’t going to pitch in five or six days,” manager A.J. Hinch said.

Ty Madden was recalled from Triple-A Toledo, putting a fresh arm in Detroit’s weary bullpen. The right-hander replaced Framber Valdez with two outs in the first and pitched 3 1/3 innings of one-run ball in Tuesday night’s 11-2 loss at Wrigley Field.

The Tigers used four relievers to cover 4 2/3 innings in Sunday’s 3-2 loss at the Los Angeles Angels. Then they used five relievers for six innings in their series opener against the Cubs.

Infielder Zach McKinstry and catcher Jake Rogers each pitched one inning on Tuesday night.

“The two position players helped us get to the finish line,” Hinch said. “Today was like live to play another day.”

The 26-year-old Madden has no record and a 3.09 ERA in eight appearances for Detroit this year. He is 2-0 with a 4.71 ERA in 11 starts and one relief appearance with Toledo.

“There’s a little different edge and sort of a different attention to detail, I think, when he gets to the big leagues and he’s performed really well here,” Hinch said. “He challenges the strike zone. He’s got a tough, tough combo with his slider and split. Somebody I do trust a lot to pitch in a variety of roles.”

Hinch said Justin Verlander was the first player from the team to arrive at the ballpark on Tuesday. The 43-year-old right-hander, who plans to retire after this season, is coming back from hip and hamstring injuries.

“His arm’s still moving,” Hinch said. “We haven’t gotten to the mound yet. Once that happens, then we can start to lay out a little bit of a longer plan.”

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