Lawynd says...

@NHsaints - the ugliness involving Manu only ensued after the referee had failed to penalise any of the late shoulder charges on Toby Flood that Lawes and Hartley had put in during the first fifteen minutes of the game, any of which if punished correctly would at least have received a yellow card. Then to mention Murphy, who was defending a player who was TACKLED AND DRAGGED INTO TOUCH BY HIS HAIR, shows how blinkered you are.

Posted 08:45 31st March 2012

NHsaints says...

@lawynd ahem? Say what? You're seriously accusing us of playing dirty against the tigers...kings of playing dirty...lest you forget tuilagi was the one punching Ashton and Murphy was heavily involved with the most recent scrap between the clubs...despite not being sent off or cited despite throwing 4 or 5 punches...just because two of our players play dirty doesn't mean the club goes out with the intention of cheating...

Posted 16:53 30th March 2012

three6three6 says...

Unfortunately the video evidence is pretty damning.... a forward pinned in collapsed maul with his arm deliberately being interfered with.... Do not get me wrong rugby is a contact sport but stupid on field actions need to be stamped out. Calum Clark is a half decent player, he does not need to conduct himself in this manner. He should also have more respect for his fellow professional rugby players. In short a pretty unsavory incident, that has probably sent the right message to the perpetrator. Clark will now need to clean his act up (much like Hartley had to) or he will find contracts being torn up in future.

Posted 16:19 30th March 2012

Bones7 says...

@ jamesliveinhope I think after reading that my opinion has changed quite a bit. Perhaps it was more an aggressve and reckless attempt to get Hawkins off the ball to play it quickly and with Clark's size and strength added to Hawkins being trapped instead of a conscious decision to break his arm, although it is still pretty bad and a stupid thing to do but not malicious, which I, and I think many others, had assumed. I still don't know whether he's blagged us though or whether he is genuinely upset and remorseful but I think I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. I still expect him to be a force for England sooner rather than later.

Posted 16:02 30th March 2012

jamesliveinhope says...

http://www.rfu.com/News/2012/March/NewsArticles/~/media/Files/2012/DISCIPLINE/Judgements/LONDON/120330_-_Calum_Clark.ashx

if anyone's interested, says the intention was not to injure.

Also says that the ban should be no less than the expected time for which Hawkins is expected to be off estimated at about 10 weeks.

Actually quite interesting reading.

Posted 14:28 30th March 2012

Jediboy says...

I don't understand the negativity towards the Saints as a club?? I accept that there has been two unfortunate episodes close together, but thats not the clubs fault. Do you honestly think the clubs tells players to play dirty and injure other players?? Don't tell me, Oswald didn't shoot JFK!

Posted 13:27 30th March 2012

lawynd says...

@jameslivesinhope - how is bending a player's arm back like that unintentional? "I meant to hurt him a little bit, not this much!" - was that Clark's defence? It was after the whistle, Hawkins didn't have the ball and it wasn't a move intended to clear him out of the ruck; rather, Hawkins was stuck there and Clark grabbed the nearest mobile part and pulled. He also did it out of view of the referee, all of which suggests that a verdict of anything other than a deliberate attempt to injure a player is incorrect.

Furthermore, remorse isn't mitigation, that's absolute bovine excrement. Clark is remorseful that he won't be able to play; well he shouldn't have done what he did then, should he! And Saints should be ashamed of themselves for issuing such a statement, or even considering appealing. If they do appeal, I hope the disciplinary committee extend the ban and fine the club for wasting their time; frankly, I feel that the player and the club have gotten off lightly after repeated thuggish acts by their players, especially against Leicester.

Posted 11:16 30th March 2012

jamesliveinhope says...

Devil's advocate for a moment.

Statement from Saints

"The disciplinary panel found that Calum Clark had not intended to injure Rob Hawkins in the course of moving his arm.

Accordingly the unfortunate injury suffered by Rob Hawkins was unintentional.

'In the light of that finding of the disciplinary panel, Northampton Saints is bound to express concern and disappointment at the imposition of such a long suspension, even after significant mitigation in recognition in what was accepted to be Calum Clark's genuine remorse.

'Accordingly the club is bound to consider the merits of an appeal. No further comment will be made at this time.'

Now I'm still to be convinced, BUT, the disciplinary panel will have had all sorts of evidence that we haven't, and whilst I am sure that there will be millions of forensic TV scientists venting their spleen based on one single piece of video coverage, the reaction of the commentators and Cockerill (with no track record of overreaction ;) ) I'm pretty sure that Saints won't have misquoted them.

Shouldn't also forget that Clarke is (or more likely was) in the EPS, 36 weeks will exclude him from any touring sides (full squad or Saxons) and rule him out of contention for the Autumn internationals too.

Quite a hefty penalty for an unintentional injury.

Posted 09:50 30th March 2012

BackingLeinster says...

I have to agree that the length of the ban seems a bit lenient considering it covers part of the off season. Just watched the footage on RTE website. They'd just gotten the penalty and he decides to break someone's arm for the fun of it. He could have done with a years ban in my opinion.

Posted 09:23 30th March 2012

sanka69 says...

Agreee with many o0f the others here - far too lenient especially as it take sinto acocunt the summer - surely any bans should only take effect during the actual season? i.e. ban is 32 weeks plus the close season of however long that is. Absolutely disgraceful and hope this guy gets given grief by every true rugby supporter for the thug he has proved himself to be!

Posted 08:58 30th March 2012