
The Sanzaar Foul Play Review Committee (FPRC) has found Irie Papuni of Moana Pasifika guilty of contravening Law 9.11 - Players must not do anything that is reckless or dangerous to others.
Papuni has been suspended from all forms of the game up to and including 31 May.
The incident occurred in the 25th minute of the Super Rugby Pacific match between Moana Pasifika and Chiefs at the GO Media Stadium, Mount Smart, on Friday. Papuni was issued a yellow card for the incident during the match but upon further review of the match footage, the Citing Commissioner deemed in his opinion the incident had met the red card threshold for foul play.
The FPRC, comprised of Stephen Hardy (Chairman), Ofisa Tonu’u and Stefan Terblanche, assessed the incident.
In his finding, Hardy ruled as follows: "Having conducted a detailed review of all the available evidence, including all camera angles and additional evidence, including submissions by the player’s representative, Aaron Lloyd, the Foul Play Review Committee upheld the citing and found the player to have contravened Law 9.11.
“The FPRC assessed the player's actions as including direct head contact, at speed, with the player colliding with a high degree of force and his body position moving up and forward into the collision. The player's actions were deemed reckless.
“The player was given a discount for entering an early guilty plea (and other relevant mitigating factors including remorse and prior disciplinary record), reducing the suspension from six weeks to three weeks. The player is therefore suspended up to and including 31 May 2024.
“The player has been given the approval to apply for the World Rugby’s Head Contact - Coaching Intervention Program.”
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