'I let my emotions get the better of me' - Mack Hansen apologises after being hit with three-match ban

PUNISHED: Connacht's Mack Hansen dejected. Pic: James Crombie/Inpho

Connacht and Ireland winger Mack Hansen has received a six-week ban, with three of those weeks suspended, after an independent disciplinary panel upheld a charge of misconduct.

Additionally, the province have received a suspended €10,000 fine related to Hansen's sanction.

Australian-born Hansen will now miss the January 11 Challenge Cup clash with Lyon, the January 17 meeting with Cardiff and the January 24 URC clash against Glasgow Warriors. 

Hansen will therefore be available to play against England in the Six Nations opener on February 1, which is welcome news for Ireland interim head coach Simon Easterby.

In response to the suspension, Hansen released the following statement through the Connacht media channels.

“People know I always wear my heart on my sleeve. However after the Leinster game, on this occasion, I let my emotions get the better of me," he said. "Upon reflection, my comments to the media were ill-advised, and fell far short of the standards I expect of myself, and what the sport expects of its players.

"I want to offer an apology to the match officials for any distress my comments may have caused. Our games are built on mutual respect and I didn’t show that after the game. I also want to apologise to the URC, and I fully accept the findings of the independent disciplinary panel.

"I love Connacht, and I love rugby. Moving forward, I will channel all my energy and passion into representing my province and country to the absolute best of my ability – both on and off the field.”

Earlier this week, Hansen faced a misconduct charge following comments he made in the wake of Connacht’s URC derby defeat to Leinster last month.

The 26-year-old had hit out during a post-match press conference at Aviva Stadium following the 20-12 loss on December 21, saying he felt Connacht were facing “16 men”, a suggestion of ongoing bias by officials against his province.

"It's like we get that every time so you can hear the frustration in my voice 'cos it’s starting to get to the point where, honestly, it’s bullshit," Hansen said.

A URC statement on the matter read: "The disciplinary panel met on Wednesday, January 8 and consisted of Roger Morris (Chair, Wales), Nigel Williams (Wales) and Stefan Terblanche (South Africa).

"In deciding the sanction, the panel considered the apology from the player and that attaching a learning process would have a more positive outcome rather than merely applying a playing sanction.

"In their conclusion, a six-week ban was deemed appropriate with three weeks suspended."

The panel also imposed the following sanctions on Hansen:

• The player must make a full apology to the match official (Chris Busby, IRFU) in charge of refereeing the Leinster v Connacht fixture.
• The player must undertake an appropriate course (related to match officiating) as decided by Tappe Henning (URC head of match officials) and Dudley Phillips (IRFU head of referees) with the learnings to be disseminated with his team-mates at Connacht.
• Connacht Rugby must run an education session with their players about how to conduct themselves in post-match media sessions and interactions with the media.

Meanwhile, the referee at the centre of Hansen's comments, Busby, is understood to be stepping away from the game prior to this year's Six Nations. 

As first reported by The42, Busby is due to officiate in the Six Nations but it is thought that this weekend’s Bath v Clermont Champions Cup meeting may well be his final outing. 

Although there are said to be additional reasons behind the Belfast native's decision to give up the whistle, it has come hot on the heels of the critique he and his match officials received in Hansen's post-match press conference.

Busby quickly rose from the club game to become a professional referee with the IRFU's high performance panel in 2021. He officiated during the Rugby World Cup in 2023 as an assistant referee.