Six Nations Rugby have decided not to punish the players involved in the tunnel fracas before Scotland’s Calcutta Cup match with England last weekend.
England inside centre Owen Farrell and Scotland number eight Ryan Wilson were embroiled in a tunnel scuffle before kick-off as both men clashed following their respective warm-ups at Murrayfield last Saturday.
Six Nations Rugby wrote to both teams seeking clarification over what happened as the players left the pitch and declared upon conclusion of their investigation that “no clear evidence of violent conduct or similar against any individual player” had been found.
A statement from Six Nations Rugby read: “Six Nations Rugby gathered material from the RFU (Rugby Football Union) and SRU (Scottish Rugby Union), as well as from the BBC and the match officials. It also considered footage of the incident.
“It concluded that there was some evidence of pushing and shoving in the tunnel at the relevant time but no clear evidence of violent conduct or similar against any individual player.
“Accordingly, Six Nations Rugby will be writing to the SRU and the RFU to remind them and their respective players of their obligations to uphold the reputation of the tournament at all times, but no further disciplinary action will be taken. Six Nations Rugby will also remind all unions of their and their players’ obligations.”
Wilson has also been cited for an ‘alleged act of foul play’ during Saturday’s 25-13 win in Edinburgh.
Scotland will travel to Dublin to play Ireland next weekend but they could be without Wilson who was cited for an off the ball clash with England’s Nathan Hughes.
“The alleged offence, contact with the eye area of an opponent (Law 9.12) took place in the 37th minute of the match,” tournament organisers announced on Monday.
“A disciplinary hearing will be convened before a Six Nations Disciplinary Committee on Wednesday.”
The sanctions for a guilty verdict for contact with the eye area range from the low-end entry point of four weeks, to the mid-range sanction of eight weeks with top-end punishments ranging from 12 to 52 weeks.
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