Former Test referee Owen Doyle was left stunned that Luke Jacobson\u2019s hit on Josh van der Flier did not result in a red card for the All Blacks flanker.<\/b><\/p>\n
The back-rower was sin-binned after his tucked shoulder made contact with the head of his opposite number in Saturday\u2019s Nations Championship encounter.<\/p>\n
It was sent to the Foul Player Review Officer but it was deemed that there was mitigation and it was not upgraded to a 20-minute red card.<\/p>\n
Jacobson avoids citing<\/p>\n
While there was no extra punishment during the clash, the citing commissioner could have got involved, but it appears as though the All Black<\/a> has escaped any further sanction.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2018Why the hell isn\u2019t that a red card?\u2019 That sums up the bevy of text messages that pinged into my phone immediately after Luke Jacobson had launched himself, off his feet in a totally reckless fashion, at Josh van der Flier,\u201d Doyle wrote in his Irish Times<\/a> column.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were all from experienced, knowledgeable rugby people. I had no answer: I was busy asking myself exactly the same question.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a high degree of danger when Jacobson struck van der Flier hard in the head with his elbow. It was in the egregious category.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough not picked up by referee Nic Berry it was identified by the TMO, Ben Whitehouse. Berry then decided it met the yellow card threshold.<\/p>\n \u201cIt did indeed, but the referee showed no interest in considering a straight red card, which Jacobson\u2019s actions merited.\u201d<\/p>\n Last November, two Springboks players received straight red cards for incidents that were deemed reckless, but World Rugby<\/a> then amended the law to make sure only true acts of thuggery would result in a team being permanently reduced to 14.<\/p>\n That meant Jacobson\u2019s indiscretion, which would have always been considered a technical error rather than an intent to harm, could on the day only be punished with, at most, a 20-minute red.<\/p>\n \u201cIt went to the bunker official, Englishman Andrew Jackson, for adjudication. Surely, it would now, at least, become a 20-minute red card. But even that did not come to pass,\u201d Doyle wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cJackson found an escape route for the guilty party, decreeing that James Ryan had \u2018jammed\u2019 the All Blacks player\u2019s arm. Heavens above, where did that come from? It was a shocker of a call.\u201d<\/p>\n Dave Rennie refutes \u2018brain explosion\u2019 accusation over Luke Jacobson incident as All Blacks boss offers his verdict<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n It is not the only piece of foul play that has occurred over the past week or so with two players receiving suspensions for headbutts.<\/p>\n The first came from Italy\u2019s Niccolo Cannone, who was suspended for four weeks after an incident during their defeat to the All Blacks.<\/p>\n Thuggish hit at U20 level<\/p>\n