Betsen avoids suspension

Biarritz and France loose forward Serge Betsen emerged from his citing charge today for an alleged pre-meditated trip on London Wasps’ Stuart Abbott in the Heineken Cup without a suspension.

The Independent Disciplinary Committee found that the player did commit an act of illegal or foul play, contravening Law 10-4(d) of the Laws of the Game.

However, it also found that the trip, while intentional, was not premeditated and had been carried out "in the heat of the moment".

The panel decided the offence would not have warranted Betsen being ordered off the field of play if detected by the referee. As a result, the citing complaint was not upheld and no suspension or other sanction was imposed on the player.