These are your rugby morning headlines on Sunday, March 22.
WillGriff John was stretchered off the field late on against Exeter(Image: TNT Sports )
Here are your rugby morning headlines for Sunday, March 22.
Scotland star ‘felt’ for Moriarty as cards prove costly
Former Scotland international John Barclay says he “felt” for Ospreys back-row Ross Moriarty after he was red carded in their 31-19 defeat to Benetton on Saturday – but says he still expects the Wales flanker to be cited for his actions.
Moriarty had been sin-binned for a dangerous tackle on Thomas Gallo, in which his knee was on the floor, in the second-half in Italy. Then, no sooner had he returned to the field, he was shown dismissed again – red carded for a dangerous clearout that resulted in a try by Jack Walsh being ruled out.
Both incidents proved costly for the Ospreys as their URC play-off hopes were severely dented.
“I kind of felt for him,” said Barcley on Premier Sports. “The first yellow, it’s played right on the gainline.
“You’ve almost got no time. He tries to make a good, dominant low tackle. He doesn’t wrap, his knee is on the ground. It’s a yellow card.
“The second one is probably a bit more reckless. He’s probably got more of an opportunity with distance to come in. He gets caught high and with head contact. It’s a red card.
“The first one is a big collision. The margins are so small. In slow motion, it looks much worse. The second one, he’ll probably get cited for that.
“He’s got enough time to lower his height. The onus is on him to lower his height and wrap.”
Speaking afterwards, Ospreys head coach Mark Jones admitted that the cards were part of the reason for their frustrating defeat.
“I don’t think our penalty count was crazy,” said Jones. “We created a lot of penalties ourselves.
“But the yellow cards were definitely a factor, particularly at that point where it was a two-score game. The disallowed try was a big point.
“I have to credit Benetton. We weren’t good enough to come here and get a result. We’ll be better.
“I thought we were far too error-ridden in our general play, set-piece, phase attack. We gave the ball up too easily. Benetton brought a lot of physicality around that.
“We thought we were prepared for that. But they were very strong and we weren’t at the level required to keep hold of the ball. We spent a lot of time without the ball in the first-half in particular.
“You could see the energy drain from us. But I also saw lots of opportunities that we created. We should have scored at least two more tries.
“We should be going away with at least one point. But we weren’t accurate enough. And of course, spending 30 minutes with 14 players, it’s always going to be tough.”
Wales star stretchered off
Wales prop WillGriff John was stretchered off late in Sale’s Gallagher Prem defeat to Exeter.
Chiefs enjoyed a strong start with two tries in the opening 12 minutes from Stephen Varney and Campbell Ridl, with Olly Woodburn also crossing to help give Exeter a 19-7 lead at the interval.
Paul Brown-Bampoe then secured a bonus point with his second-half try as Chiefs held Sale at bay to move third in the table.
Sale lost Wales international John six minutes from time, with the 33-year-old carried off on a stretcher with a head injury.
“I have got to check on him but he has got a bang on his head,” said Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson.
“He has just come back from a lay-off because of a concussion, and when you back up concussions, generally it is wise to have a prolonged period of time out.
“That is what I can expect moving forward, but we will follow the concussion protocols and see where he is at.”
Six Nations star undergoes spine surgery
Italy prop Simone Ferrari is facing some time on the sidelines after undergoing spinal surgery earlier this week.
The 31-year-old missed the final round of the Six Nations against Wales with the injury, as they lost 31-17 in Cardiff. The prop had been one of their strongest performers in the tournament – playing a crucial role in wins over Scotland and England.
Benetton confirmed he had undergone surgery on Saturday, saying: “On Thursday, March 19, Simone Ferrari underwent cervical spine stabilisation surgery. The procedure was performed by Dr. Marc Szadkowski in Lyon. The prop will now begin his rehabilitation program.
“Benetton Rugby wish Simone a speedy recovery and a soon return to the field.”
Welsh coach pleased with side’s efforts
Newly-appointed Newcastle Red Bulls head coach Stephen Jones was delighted with his side’s efforts as they were narrowly denied a victory over Northampton.
The Gallagher Prem’s basement club fell to a 28-27 defeat away to league leaders Northampton. However, they were the better side for large parts of the contest.
Some better goal-kicking or a couple of refereeing decisions going their way might have handed Jones a first victory just days after assuming full control of the club.
“I’m wonderfully proud of the boys and delighted with some of the rugby we played,” said the former Wales fly-half. “We fronted up in the collisions and had good attacking threats to create a lot of opportunities.
“However we need to be technically better to finish them off and we are fully aware that we need to continue to improve.
“To pick up two yellow cards was disappointing and we need to review that in an attempt to get that out of the game but we were exceptionally smart in dealing with that sin-bin period.
“I can’t comment on some of the refereeing decisions as I’d like to see them and review them in detail.”