‘I mean come on… It doesn’t make any sense’ – Rebels boss slams Fijian Drua bans
Melbourne Rebels boss Kevin Foote and Fijian prop Jone Koroiduadua's headbutt.
Melbourne Rebels coach Kevin Foote has slammed the Super Rugby Pacific Foul Play Review Committee’s (FPRC) decision to hand prop Jone Koroiduadua a two-week ban.
Foote has described the headbutt from the Fijian Drua forward as ‘malicious’ and criticised the committee’s assessment that it warranted a low entry point.
“Whether he lands it or not is irrelevant”
Koroiduadua was the second Drua player to be sent off during the Super Rugby Pacific clash in Melbourne after scrum-half Frank Lomani was given his marching orders for an elbow to the head of lock Josh Canham.
The decision to deem the prop’s actions as a low-entry sanction meant that his potential ban started at six weeks instead of mid-range (10 weeks) or top-end (16 weeks) under World Rugby’s guidelines.
While Foote believed that Lomani’s six-week ban was appropriate, he was left fuming by Koroiduadua’s suspension, particularly after Reece Hodge’s two-week ban in 2021 after two yellow card incidents.
“There is intent there, whether he lands it or not is irrelevant,” Foote told reporters.
“If Mafi has his head forward at that stage and he hits him, does that make it worse?
Super ‘WWE’ Rugby blasted after Fiji prop gets ‘disgraceful’ ban for ‘violent assault’
Jone Koroiduadua has been banned for just 2 weeks for his headbutt. 😳
6 weeks cut to 3 and then: a sanction of 3 weeks would have been wholly disproportionate to the level and type of offending involved, & applied a further reduction of 1 week.”pic.twitter.com/V2ucdLGHgx…
— Jared Wright (@jaredwright17) April 10, 2024
“That is malicious. My understanding is if you make any contact with the head, we have been told that is top, top, top suspension. And he gets two weeks.”
Foote added that the Drua prop was on a “mission” and highlighted other game-related incidents.
“He [Koroiduadua] was on a mission. There was a late hit on Carter [Gordon] and there was something with Ryan [Louwrens] just before that. But then to obviously headbutt on top of that, I mean come on,” he added.
How his players responded
The coach remembered Hodge’s ban in 2021 when the Wallabies’ back got two weeks after two yellow card incidents.
“How does Hodgey get a red card after a team foul and a yellow foul, and it’s two weeks, and that [headbutt] gets two weeks? It doesn’t make any sense,” Foote said.
While he was fuming about the incidents in the match, he was pleased by the reaction, or lack there of, from his players.
“I said to the players that there were a couple of incidents in that game, how proud I was of them,” he said.
“I said to the team it could cost us a season, if one of retaliates or does something silly, all of sudden you are getting suspended. I think they did pretty well.”
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