There was a familiar theme to the latest round of the Gallagher Premiership in that it was another weekend full of cards, and in Bath’s case against London Irish, two sending offs.
England second-rower Charlie Ewells was given his marching orders for receiving two yellow cards, but it was replacement hooker Tom Dunn who saw a straight red for possibly the most unnecessary sending off of the season.
Dunn was dismissed following an elbow to the face of London Irish’s Augustin Creevy, far away from the action, prompting Creevy to hit the ground.
Creevy’s reaction was perhaps exaggerated but the fact that Dunn even considered sticking his elbow anywhere near the former Argentina international simply beggars belief.
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Referee Craig Maxwell-Keyes correctly implemented the letter of the law, which states that no player can strike another with force in the head or neck area, and duly gave Dunn his marching orders.
Whether the force can be deemed in any other way than light is largely irrelevant in the debate, as Dunn should never have struck Creevy in the first place. The local publication Bath Chronicle summed up Dunn’s actions succinctly as “a mindless moment of stupidity”.
Both Dunn and Ewells will face disciplinary hearings on Wednesday this week, with their sentences handed out soon after.
London Irish made the most of their numerical advantage – particularly after Bath went down to 12 players following Will Muir’s sin-binning – and subsequently claimed a bonus point victory despite themselves going down to 13-men by the end after another pair of yellow cards. Chaos.
Dunn will appear before an online independent disciplinary panel
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