Exeter blow as England hopeful cops ban for red-carded ‘split-second response to pain and frustration’
Ethan Roots in action against Gloucester and, inset, Exeter boss Rob Baxter (News Images LTD and INPHO/James Crombie)
Exeter Chiefs’ double hopes have been dented by the suspension handed down to Ethan Roots following his 20-minute red card in last Sunday’s PREM Rugby loss at Gloucester.
The match at Kingsholm was in the 80th minute when the England back-rower took exception to a collision from Jack Innard, and he was sent off by referee Matthew Carley for striking with an open hand to the head of the opponent who was left with a suspected concussion.
Roots’ disciplinary hearing was heard on papers by sole judicial officer Daniel Gore and he has been banned for three matches. It means he will be absent when Exeter take on Ulster in Saturday’s EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final in Belfast and will also miss the PREM matches that they play-off chasing Chiefs have against Bath on May 10 and Harlequins on May 16.
In the 10-page disciplinary hearing verdict published by the RFU, Roots accepted the charge that had been brought against him. His written statement went on to explain why he reacted the way he did on the Kingsholm pitch and he apologised for what he described as a split-second response.
“We have no personal animosity at all…”
“I accept the charge brought by the RFU,” he wrote. “I know Jack Innard well, as he played for the Chiefs in my first seasons here. We have no personal animosity at all. To the contrary, he is a friend and my brother, who also plays for Exeter, has rented his house since Jack joined Gloucester.
“The game on April 26 was my second back after some six weeks with a torn calf. It was a good-humoured game with none of the niggles that sometimes happen with our fellow West Country teams. We had been struggling and Gloucester had been playing well.
“Early in the second half, I had been tackled and brought down and found that I had been injured to my left leg just below the knee. I played on for a few minutes but it was bleeding so I was taken off.
“I spent 10 mins or so with the medics who found that I had a piece of hard plastic lodged in my leg along with rubber crumb and artificial grass. They cleaned out the wound and gave me four stitches and a large plaster and I returned to play.
“It was an extremely painful experience as the local anaesthetic really did not have time to kick in. The game continued and we were in the last few moments of extra time.
“I had the ball and passed it. Jack tackled me and though I no longer had possession, I fully understood why because he had committed to it. However, he came in very low and his shoulder came into contact with my leg exactly on the injury I had just received. This was very painful. I reacted by pushing my hand down on his head.
“It was not a strong hit and there was no closed fist or anything like that. I said to him, ‘What the f*** do you think you are doing?’ and moved away.
“I have tried to rationalise what happened, and why, and I have no idea what I was trying to do or achieve. It was a split-second response to pain and frustration and I am very sorry for it.”
Roots’ offence was deemed to have a six-game midrange entry point, but the sanction was reduced by 50 per cent due to mitigation. “Despite the injury suffered by the opponent and the deliberate, albeit reactionary, nature of the action, a higher entry point was not appropriate,” read the verdict before listing other mitigations, such as Roots’ “clear and early remorse after the incident”.
Speaking about the incident at a midweek media briefing ahead of the trip to Ulster, Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said: “The reality was we were playing with penalty advantage, and we have got a free shot to win the game. In some ways, it wrapped up our performance in a moment; being able to keep clear heads, know where to put our energy and emotions and which direction to drive ourselves is important.
“That’s what team sports are all about, and that was a perfect example of forgetting the team has to come first and doing the right thing at the right time. That moment highlighted it more than anything else.”
