Ospreys full-back Dan Evans has been banned for four weeks after being sent off for striking Racing 92 wing Teddy Thomas with his boot in the round three Heineken Champions Cup clash in Swansea.
Evans received one of the quickest red cards in professional rugby union history when he left the field after just 37 seconds at the Liberty Stadium.
Referee Frank Murphy dismissed him after the two-cap player’s left boot made contact with Thomas’ face as he claimed a high ball.
He was summoned to appear before a disciplinary panel under contravention of law 9.12 related to kicking.
An independent committee upheld the sending off, finding that the act of foul play was reckless.
As contact to the head or neck carries a minimum mandatory mid-range sanction, according to World Rugby’s regulations, eight weeks was selected as the appropriate entry point.
There were no aggravating factors, and taking into account the player’s guilty plea and expression of remorse, the committee reduced the sanction by the maximum of 50 percent before imposing their four-week suspension.
He is banned until January 6 — meaning he will miss the Ospreys’ return fixture against Racing in Paris this weekend and the derbies against Cardiff Blues, the Scarlets and the Dragons over the festive period.
The committee considered images of the incident, and heard evidence and submissions by video conference from Evans from the Ospreys team manager, Dai Davies, and from the ECPR disciplinary officer, Liam McTiernan.
Both the player and EPCR have the right to appeal the decision.
Losing their star No. 15 for close on a month is another blow for the Welsh region in a season where the challenges keep on coming.
The incident in the opening exchanges against Racing prompted a heated debate afterwards, with a number of people, including current and past players, feeling that Evans was trying to maintain his balance as he fumbled the ball while in the air, with the suggestion being that he couldn’t avoid throwing out a leg as he tried to steady himself.
Other social media users backed the decision of Irish official Murphy to apply the ultimate sanction.
The disciplinary panel comprised Dan White (England), who chaired proceedings, Gordon Black (Ireland) and Marcello d’Orey (Portugual).
