THE IRISH team management will lodge a robust defence of Stephen Ferris before an independent Six Nations Disciplinary Committee in London today after the Irish flanker was yesterday cited, along with the Welsh lock Bradley Davies, for the incidents which led to their respective yellow cards in last Sunday’s game at the Aviva Stadium.
“He does have an exemplary disciplinary record. He’s played 31 times for Ireland and never received so much as a yellow card. The last yellow card he received was more than two years ago,” said team manager Mick Kearney, who will accompany Ferris, along with their legal representative Donal Spring, to London today.
Ferris has only received three cards in 92 games for Ulster over seven seasons, the most recent of which was 24 games ago in a Heineken Cup tie on January 15th 2010 when he was sin-binned for illegally killing the ball. His previous yellow cards were in a 43-0 Magners League loss away to the Ospreys in September 2008, for knees in a ruck, and in April 2008 against Connacht for recklessly diving over a ruck.
He was also yellow carded once for the Lions in a 26-24 win over the Cheetahs in 2009 for slowing down ruck ball and has never received a red card in his career.
Kearney admitted that the Irish management were surprised at the citing. “I spoke to the match commissioner on Sunday evening and he indicated it was going to be a possibility but he was going to study the video yesterday.
“We received notification quite late last night he was going to cite him. He (Ferris) is obviously very disappointed but he’s going to train this afternoon and get on with it, and we’re hopeful we are going to get the right outcome.
“The view I would have was that it wasn’t a foul,” said Kearney. “I looked at the footage again and Stephen certainly didn’t drive the player up and take both feet off the ground. I don’t think the player was ever horizontal. We’re very disappointed, first of all with the yellow card and the penalty, but we’re even more disappointed he has been cited as well.”
Ferris and Davies were both cited by the match Citing Commissioner, Achille Reali of Italy, for foul play under IRB Law 10.4(j), which states: “Lifting a player from the ground and dropping or driving that player into the ground whilst that player’s feet are still off the ground such that the player’s head and/or upper body come into contact with the ground is dangerous play”.
The recommended IRB suspensions, if found guilty, are (lower end) three weeks, (mid range) six weeks to (top end) 10-plus weeks, up to a maximum of 52 weeks. Given the blatant nature of Davies tip-tackling Donnacha Ryan horizontally into the ground, and that it was off the ball, the Welsh lock could well be on the receiving end of a top end suspension.
Warren Gatland virtually accepted as much afterwards, although with Dan Lydiate resuming training yesterday the likelihood is that they will just move Ryan Jones into the secondrow to accommodate Lydiate’s return.
France away is arguably the game for which Ireland would most want the ultra physical Ferris and there must be a concern that he will receive a lower end suspension, perhaps even reduced slightly due to his disciplinary record, given the IRB’s campaign to eradicate tip-tackles from the game.
Following on from the World Cup furore over this issue, it would also be backing Wayne Barnes’s judgment. “It’s always a worry but we have to let due process take place,” admitted Kearney.
The consequences for Ireland, who won’t name their team until tomorrow either, would presumably mean a first cap for Peter O’Mahony in Paris – which revives uncomfortable memories of Irish flankers making their Test debuts in the Parisian graveyard – against a huge French backrow further buttressed by the return of Imanol Harinordoquy, that regular thorn in Irish sides, alongside the big-hitting Thierry Dusautoir and Louis Picamoles.
The other three changes are all up front, with the selection of Dimitri Szarzewski and Yoann Maestri also like to add to their mobility, with Jean-Baptiste Poux’s recall ahead of Vincent Debaty liable to strengthen their scrum. Were Ferris ruled out, Seán O’Brien would perhaps switch from openside to blindside, with Rhys Ruddock called up to the bench.
There was better news from the Irish camp regarding Keith Earls. “All is well with the child (Emma May),” confirmed Kearney. It thus seems likely that Earls, who along with Denis Leamy have agreed new two-year deals with Munster and Ireland, will come back into the team, most likely at outside centre, where he had been originally selected for the Welsh game.
