Josaia Raisuqe was sent off for this incident against CJ Stander

Here are the disciplinary hearings following last weekend’s rescheduled matches in the Challenge Cup and Champions Cup.

RED CARDS:

Josaia Raisuqe (Stade Français Paris):

The Stade Francais Paris wing, Josaia Raisuqe (No 11), was issued with a Red Card during the European Rugby Champions Cup rescheduled Round 2 match against Munster Rugby on Saturday, 9 January 2016.

Raisuqe was sent off by referee, Nigel Owens (Wales), in the 41st minute of the match at Stade Jean Bouin for allegedly making contact with the eye(s) and / or eye area of the Munster Rugby loose forward, CJ Stander (No 8), in contravention of Law 10.4 (m).

Simon Thomas (Wales) has been appointed as the independent Judicial Officer for the disciplinary hearing which will take place in Paris today (Wednesday, 13 January).

Law 10.4 (m) Contact with the eye(s) and / or eye area:
Under World Rugby’s Sanctions for Foul Play, Law 10.4 (m), Contact with the eye(s) and / or eye area carries the following sanction entry points – Low End: 12 weeks; Mid-Range: 18 weeks; Top End: 24 to 208 weeks.

Julien Ledevedec (Bordeaux-Bègles):

The Bordeaux-Bègles replacement, Julien Ledevedec (No 19), was issued with a Red Card during the European Rugby Champions Cup rescheduled Round 1 match against ASM Clermont Auvergne on Friday, 8 January 2016.

Ledevedec was sent off by referee, Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland), in the 51st minute of the match at Stade Chaban-Delmas for an alleged strike against the Clermont lock, Paul Jedasriak (No 4), in contravention of Law 10.4 (a).

Simon Thomas (Wales) has been appointed as the independent Judicial Officer for the disciplinary hearing which will take place by video conference today (Wednesday, 13 January).

Law 10.4 (a) Striking with the head:
Under World Rugby’s Sanctions for Foul Play, Law 10.4 (a), Striking with the head, carries the following sanction entry points – Low End: 4 weeks; Mid-Range: 10 weeks; Top End: 16 to 52 weeks.

CITING COMPLAINT:

Jale Vatubua (Pau):

EPCR has received a citing complaint against the Pau centre, Jale Vatubua (No 12), following the European Rugby Challenge Cup rescheduled Round 1 match against Castres Olympique on Saturday, 9 January 2016.

Vatubua is alleged to have charged dangerously in to the Castres Olympique fullback, Geoffrey Palis (No 15), in the 51st minute of the match in contravention of Law 10.4 (g) and was shown a Yellow Card by referee Ian Davies (Wales) following the incident.

The complaint was made by the match Citing Commissioner, Eugene Ryan (Ireland).

Antony Davies (England) has been appointed as the independent Judicial Officer for the disciplinary hearing which will take place in Paris today (Wednesday, 13 January).

Law 10.4 (g) Dangerous charging or knocking down an opponent with the ball, including shouldering:
Under World Rugby’s Sanctions for Foul Play, Law 10.4 (g), carries the following sanction entry points – Low End: 2 weeks; Mid-Range: 5 weeks; Top End: 10 to 52 weeks

Notes:

(i) Red Cards
a) The case of any player sent off in European Rugby Champions Cup and Challenge Cup games shall be adjudicated by an independent Judicial Officer as soon as is practicable.
b) Until the hearing the player is ineligible to play in any tournament.

(ii) Citing Commissioner
a) Citing Commissioners are appointed by EPCR for all European Rugby Champions Cup and all televised Challenge Cup matches and shall be entitled to cite a player for any act or acts of Foul Play that in the Citing Commissioner’s opinion warranted a Red Card.
b) For such matches, clubs will not have the power to cite a player but may refer incidents to the Citing Commissioner within 26 hours of the start of the match.
c) The Citing Commissioner will have 50 hours from the start of the match to make a citing. In certain circumstances this deadline can be extended.
d) The tournament Disciplinary Officer may forward the submitted citing to a Citing Officer to determine whether there are sufficient grounds for the citing to progress.
e) The Disciplinary Officer will then bring a charge against the cited player.

(iii) Disciplinary Hearing
a) The independent Judicial Officer is chosen by the chairman of the independent Disciplinary Panel, Professor Lorne Crerar.
b) EPCR’s Disciplinary Officer presents the case against the player.
c) If a decision is upheld, the independent Judicial Officer will be required to consider the appropriate sanction. Under World Rugby’s sanctioning regime, which EPCR is obliged to follow, the Judicial Officer will first assess the seriousness of the player’s actions and determine which of the three stipulated entry points (lower end, mid range and top end) is the most appropriate.
d) The Judicial Officer will determine the appropriate entry point based on his / her assessment of a number of particular characteristics of the player’s actions, including whether or not they were intentional, whether or not they caused any injuries and whether or not they had any effect on the relevant match.
e) After deciding the entry point, the Judicial Officer will then consider whether the suspension should be increased from the entry point to take account of certain specified aggravating factors, such as a poor disciplinary record or the need for deterrence, and / or decreased from the entry point to take account of certain specified mitigating actions, such as a guilty plea, a good disciplinary record, the player’s conduct at the hearing and expressions of remorse.
f) A suspension is a blanket ban from playing rugby union anywhere in the world.
g) Both parties to the hearing (EPCR and the player) have the right to appeal decisions of the independent Disciplinary Hearing. Appeals must be lodged within three (3) working days of receiving the full written decision of the Judicial Officer.
h) The full written decision of the Judicial Officer will be made available online when the disciplinary process is complete

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Red Card Footage: