Here are your rugby headlines for Friday, December 24.
Dan Fish hit with three-week ban
Cardiff fly-half Dan Fish has been banned for three weeks following a disciplinary hearing.
Fish, 31, was cited for "making contact in a dangerous manner with the head" of Harlequins full-back Tyrone Green.
The incident happened in the 80th minute of Cardiff's 43-17 defeat at Harlequins in the Champions Cup on December 18.
Fish pleaded guilty to the offence and will be free to play from January 17, 2022. However, given his intention to retire before being called back to cover a severely depleted Cardiff squad, that might not really matter.
The official statement read: “The committee upheld the complaint, finding that Fish had made contact with Green’s head in a dangerous manner. It then determined that the offence was at the mid-range of World Rugby’s sanctions and selected six weeks as the appropriate entry point.
“Taking into account the player’s guilty plea and excellent disciplinary record, and there being no aggravating factors, the committee reduced the sanction by three weeks before imposing a three-week suspension.
“Given his upcoming playing schedule which includes matches on 27 December, 3 January and 15 January, Fish is free to play on Monday, 17 January 2022. If he applies for a World Rugby Coaching Intervention, he will be free to play on Tuesday, 4 January 2022.”
Turnbull calls on returning stars to back up recent displays
Club captain Josh Turnbull has called on Cardiff’s returning players to back up their recent Champions Cup displays.
With more than 40 players unavailable after their South African nightmare, a hastily-compiled squad of internationals, academy youngsters and semi-professional players took on European champions Toulouse and English title-holders Harlequins.
Turnbull, who was among the 32 players forced to quarantine, says momentum from Europe has carried into this week’s preparations ahead of facing the Scarlets on Boxing Day (3pm kick-off).
“We spoke as a playing group about how well the boys have done over the last two weeks,” he said.
“They’ve turned a few heads and it’s pricked a few consciences.
“The young boys and the Premiership players stepping in has really put Cardiff Rugby in good light.
“But that will mean nothing if the boys coming back in against the Scarlets don’t back it up.
“They’re in a similar position, and haven’t played for eight weeks, and had to do a similar quarantine.
“The game last week was called off so they probably haven’t got the buzz around training like we have at the moment.
“It’s the one game I look forward to every year, it’s the one that really gets me buzzing. I enjoy raising intensity levels and ripping into them.
“It’s disappointing that we can’t have crowds but obviously health comes first.
“These games are massive for all clubs and you want to play them in front of full crowds.
"The biggest disappointment is that we’re unable to reschedule these fixtures and play derbies in front of big crowds.”
Three Wales players key to success named
Former Wales captain Gwyn Jones has named Ken Owens, Josh Navidi and George North as the players who were central to Wales' success in the early part of 2021.
Wayne Pivac's Wales grew in confidence as the Six Nations progressed for the men in red to claim the title and narrowly miss out on a Grand Slam thanks to France's efforts.
But Jones argues the concerns at the start of this year - the scrum and lineout - remain, with Wales' key influential men all absent for the autumn campaign which yielded two wins from four.
"The Welsh set-piece appears reliant on Ken Owens to function. It is not good to have to rely on a 35-year-old hooker with increasing injury problems to be able to win a restart," he said.
"They put 40 points on England, and travelled to Paris for the Grand Slam. Crestfallen by the cruel manner of defeat in the closing seconds, I was nevertheless filled with optimism about the future.
"This was Wales’ best performance in the Wayne Pivac era. Wales scored four tries, they were positive in intent and rather than drag the game into an arm-wrestle, they wanted to push the limits of what they could do.
"Central to Wales’ success were three players who were sorely missed nine months later in the autumn series. Owens, Josh Navidi and George North."
But Jones feels Wales regressed during the autumn, with injuries admittedly playing their part.
"The worries that I had 12 months ago are still there. The fragility of the scrum and lineout and how brittle the defence can be at times. But most of all, I am anxious to see the Wayne Pivac-Stephen Jones attacking game plan come into fruition.
"In the four games this Autumn, Wales didn’t create and they didn’t threaten. They have had two years to bed in, we should be seeing progress by now."
Read Gwyn Jones' full 2021 review here.
Conor Murray extends Ireland career
Conor Murray has signed fresh terms to stay in Ireland after he put pen to paper on a new contract with the Irish Rugby Football Union until the summer of 2024.
It will keep the scrum-half at Munster and part of Andy Farrell's national team following speculation French clubs were monitoring the situation regarding the British and Irish Lions ace.
Murray said: "I'm delighted and grateful to be able to continue living this dream of playing here in Ireland.
"With my home province Munster and the national squad, I truly believe there's huge potential of success and that there will be many more big days ahead."
The 32-year-old represented the Lions for a third tour this summer and is only eight caps away from bringing up his century in Ireland colours.
David Nucifora, Performance Director at IRFU, added: "Conor has had some challenges in the past few seasons but has put some niggling injuries behind him to play a central role with Munster, Ireland and the Lions.
"He is a popular figure in every squad he is involved in and adds a huge amount of experience and value to younger players coming through."
Springbok World Cup winner targeting 2023 tournament
South Africa’s No. 8 Duane Vermeulen insists he is aiming to make the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
Despite being in his mid-30s, he still harbours ambitions for more international success.
Having missed the Test series against the British and Irish Lions through injury, another World Cup is something the 35-year-old is aiming for, particularly after his move to Ulster.
“I always said if things didn’t work out contractually in South Africa then I’d go to play abroad,” he told The Ulster Rugby Show.
“The Ulster offer came up and I thought, ‘maybe doing this might be good for my rugby’.
“You can always learn and maybe a change of scenery and environment will do me good. I chatted to my wife and we decided on doing that.
“I still want to play for the Springboks as well. So if I can push towards the next World Cup as well, that’s my marker. That’s a big thing.
“If I can play and contribute I want to keep going as long as I can.”
Bath wing remains suspended as appeal fails
Bath wing Will Muir has had his appeal against a four-week ban rejected.
Muir was cited for having made contact in a reckless manner with the eye of Leinster's Josh Van Der Flier in a Champions Cup match on December 11.
And an independent appeal committee hearing on Thursday decided the punishment was appropriate, meaning Muir will be banned until January 10.
He is therefore due to miss matches against Gloucester, Exeter, London Irish and Worcester.
A statement from European Professional Club Rugby read: "The appeal committee was not satisfied on the balance of probability that the decision appealed against was wrong, or that the original disciplinary committee had fallen into error, and the appeal was therefore refused."
Cardiff fly-half Dan Fish, meanwhile, has been suspended for three weeks for making contact in a dangerous manner with the head of Harlequins full-back Tyrone Green.
The incident occurred during the final minute of the Champions Cup match, which Quins won 43-17, last Saturday.
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