Leamy in the dock as O’Driscoll escapes citing
Match commissioner Rob Flockhart did not mention any O’Driscoll stamping incident in his match report, despite Italian claims regarding an incident also involving hooker Fabio
Ongaro.
O’Driscoll has insisted he was only clearing out a ruck. Although he was seen making contact with Ongaro, the 27-year-old insisted he had not acted illegally, and said after the game: “Italy were trying to slow our ball down.
“Rucking is part of the game these days and as far I’m concerned that’s exactly what I was doing.”
Leamy, however, was reported by Flockhart for an alleged stamping incident, and the 24-year-old Munster man will have a hearing tomorrow in London to determine whether he will face punishment.
Flockhart will take additional time to decide whether there is a case against an Italian player for an alleged biting incident on Simon Easterby.
The identity of the Italian player has not been made public.
Easterby has identified the culprit, but it is understood authorities are struggling to prove his identity and new International Rugby Board regulations allow Flockhart to take additional time to gather new evidence.
With Italy playing England this Saturday, Six Nations disciplinary authorities could make a decision within the next 48 hours.
Leamy’s alleged stamp was on Italian scrum-half Paul Griffin and the Munster forward could face a lengthy ban that could also have implications for Munster’s Heineken Cup campaign.
Ironically for Leamy, Sale winger Epi Taione yesterday pleaded guilty to biting the Munster man in their recent Heineken Cup clash at Thomond Park and has been handed an 18-week ban.
Taione was cited after Sale’s defeat by Munster on January 21 and appeared before an independent disciplinary committee in London yesterday. The panel heard submissions from both Heineken Cup organisers European Rugby Cup and Taione before ruling the appropriate entry-point for sanctions was a six-month ban.
After considering “various compelling mitigating factors” Taione was slapped with an 18-week suspension. He will miss the rest of this season and will not be free to play again until Monday, June 12.
Taione was cited afterwards by the ERC commissioner Iain Goodall for biting Leamy on the right arm, but initially he denied any wrongdoing.
He said at the time: “I have heard what has been said but I didn’t bite him. I was trying to take off from the base of a scrum.
“He was holding me back.
“He said to the ref that I had bitten him and he was pointing to his arm.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m okay.”
However, Taione changed his tune when fronting the panel yesterday, where under IRB regulations he faced a maximum two-year ban.
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