Outraged Leinster stunned by decision to clear O’Connell

Joe Schmidt and Leo Cullen have expressed outrage at the failure to cite Paul O’Connell for the incident which resulted in the hospitalisation of Dave Kearney.

Schmidt believes that the game of rugby has been damaged by the decision of Citing Commissioner Eddie Walsh not to pursue the matter while Cullen admitted that his faith in the disciplinary system has been damaged.

Both spoke of what they termed to be the dangerous precedent set by the failure to at least ask the Munster veteran to explain his actions to a disciplinary committee after he made contact with Kearney’s head in an attempt to fly-hack a ball in the second half of the derby. However, RaboDirect PRO12 officials last night confirmed that the competition’s rules and regulations state clearly that there is no means by which O’Connell can now be called to account after the initial 48-hour citing deadline passed.

That, it appears, is that, but the incident and its aftermath has been greeted with what Schmidt termed as surprise, and Cullen bemusement, and both talked at some length about the sour aftertaste it has left in its wake.

Schmidt also admitted that comments from Munster coach, Rob Penney, on Monday that O’Connell had “absolutely nothing to answer for” played a significant part in the club’s decision to go public with their thoughts.

That the Leinster coach would choose to put himself front and centre on such a sensitive issue in a week where he is to be interviewed for the role of Ireland head coach was, perhaps, the clearest indication of the anger felt.

“I’m certainly not here because I want to answer a lot of questions about a job I haven’t even been offered and might never be offered,” Schmidt stated while stressing that this was about the process and principal involved rather than the player.

At no point did Schmidt or Cullen go as far as to say that O’Connell should have been suspended for his action and the Kiwi was at pains to put on record his high regard for the Munster man.

“I’ve no problem speaking volumes about Paul O’Connell as a person, as a player. I think he’s a superb man and a superb player. But I think what we’ve created is a dangerous baseline; when someone can be kicked unconscious on the ground and it not even be brought to the judiciary.”

Schmidt did add, however, that the incident was one of the ugliest he had seen in 12 years coaching and pointed out that it will not be addressed by disciplinary officials in a week when Stade Francais’ Jerome Fillol received a 14-week ban for spitting.

“It is a very difficult moment for us,” said Schmidt. “One of the reasons we feel compelled to say something is that Dave Kearney, in what I’ve read, seems to be the forgotten man. He was the guy that was kicked unconscious.

“He was the guy subjected to CT scans and spent an uncomfortable night in hospital. When those sort of things happen, you have to look at kids and the global game and it has been damaged when I see that and people see that.”

Schmidt dismissed what he termed “semantics” — whether the act was careless or reckless, or whether it was a foot or a shin that caught Kearney and knocked him cold — and warned that the decision not to take the matter further set a low barometer as to what is and isn’t acceptable on the rugby field.

“We’re trying to grow the game globally. And we’ve effectively said — by not citing a person and asking questions — that that’s an acceptable act on a rugby field. It’s not a question of intent or the individual. It’s more a question of the process. And for (citing commissioner) Eddie Walsh to determine that that is an acceptable act on a rugby field, is a surprise to us. And I think it’s a surprise to a lot of people. I think it’s a surprise in France where social media have gone mad and I think mainstream media will be following up pretty soon.”

It was an opinion backed up by Cullen who, four years ago, went to bat for Munster’s Alan Quinlan in a disciplinary hearing after the former flanker was deemed to have made contact with his eye area in a Heineken Cup semi-final at Croke Park.

“Looking back at it since, yeah, pretty disappointed about the way it has panned out,” said the Leinster captain. “Clearly the player has been knocked unconscious by another player while he was on the ground.

“Obviously, my first instinct is to be protective of one of my own players. Players have to have faith in the system and I suppose the faith I would have has changed now. Clearly there is an issue there and it is disappointing.”

By yesterday evening, 90,000 people had viewed the incident on YouTube. As for Kearney, the prognosis is positive, even if he will not be available for Leinster’s trip to Italy where they will face Zebre on Sunday.

Kearney aside, Leinster have injury concerns over Gordon D’Arcy who suffered a mild calf strain at Thomond Park, but should be fit for the weekend, while Quinn Roux’s dead leg should be past tense by then too.

Brian O’Driscoll (cramp) and Sean O’Brien (eye) are also confirmed as available while Jonathan Sexton and Fergus McFadden are both in the mix as well after missing out on the 22-16 victory in Limerick.