BRITISH and Irish Lions hooker Dan Sheehan was cited Sunday for foul play over an incident in the third Test against Australia that flattened Wallabies playmaker Tom Lynagh.
The Irish hooker charged into the breakdown during the first half of the clash in Sydney that the hosts won 22-12, appearing to elbow Lynagh in the head.
The incident was missed by the referee and television match official (TMO), despite Lynagh leaving the field for a head injury assessment which he failed.
World Rugby confirmed the citing, stating, “British and Irish Lions player Dan Sheehan will have a citing complaint reviewed by an Independent Foul Play Review Committee after being cited by the independent citing commissioner Adrien Menez for an act of foul play contrary to Law 9.20 (a).”
Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt admitted he initially missed the incident. “We didn’t see Tom’s incident, and it was probably a little bit later that we got a glimpse of it, and that’s all I’ve seen so far,“ he said.
Schmidt acknowledged the challenges for officials, adding, “There’s always a difficulty for a TMO. He’s watching the main TV broadcast, and then if he doesn’t pick it up there, then he doesn’t access the other angles because everything’s happening so quickly.”
The Sydney Test was played in difficult weather conditions, with Lions skipper Maro Itoje failing a concussion test and lock James Ryan being knocked out during a tackle. – AFP
