McGahan shocked at O’Connell red card
O’Connell was dramatically red carded by French referee Christophe Berdos 12 minutes from the end of Munster’s 22-16 win at Thomond Park for lashing out at Ospreys number eight, Jonathan Thomas.
Video evidence indicated that O’Connell instinctively swung an arm back at Thomas but Berdos had no hesitation in ending the lock’s comeback.
O’Connell insisted to the official: “He’s pulling me back, I swung my arm, I barely touched him.”
And Munster coach Tony McGahan said he was so “shocked” by the decision he thought he had developed colour blindness with the card.
He looks certain to be handed some type of a ban although McGahan will be hoping it won’t be anything as lengthy as the 10 week suspension (subsequently reduced to seven) imposed on Ospreys former centre Gavin Henson almost five years ago.
Said Ospreys forwards coach Jonathan Humphreys: “Paul O’Connell is not a dirty player by any stretch of the imagination. It’s a very similar thing that happened to Gavin and unfortunately he got 10 weeks for an offence like that. We’ve got a lot of admiration for Paul as a player; he’s a very iconic figure here.”
Said McGahan: “I haven’t talked to him yet (O’Connell), I’ve left him to cool down. We had a brief look at it, not in enough depth to make any comment. But we saw what everyone else saw which was a holding on of the jersey, a reaction towards that and we have to give that a bit more thought.”
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