Great defence shown by Ashton 😉 I am thinking he didnt consider the push would elicit that reaction.

It was a ridiculously high challenge on Ashton. Maybe instead of a push he should have landed one on Tuilangi in the first place. Terrible decision.

People who record off the tv like that should be made to use tripods.

would not happen in football …..have you seen how easy they go down with the merest touch 😉

Junkyard – Member
would not happen in football …..have you seen how easy they go down without the merest touch 😉

Sorted it for you

Ashton did well to stay on his feet.

Cheating Tigers scumbag.

COME ON YOU SAINTS!!!

Its all about saturday and the european cup against Leinster.

Saints were hardly pure and true – lots of niggle, late tackles jumper pulling that sort of thing.

Not a good advert for the aviva premiership

It was a ridiculously high challenge on Ashton

no it wasnt just late, he pushed Tuilagi in the head so must have expected a slap back, having said that it should have been red.

no one likes a smart arse bruneep 😆

Rugby League player. They’re not pussies like these union shirt lifters….

😉 – before you all start….

Either we are watching different clips or you are smoking something AA.

he pushed Tuilagi in the head so must have expected a slap back

Absolutely. He should have expected a bit of a biff on the bonce for that one.

having said that it should have been red.

Again, I agree absolutely.

Horrible to see. Should have been a straight red.

terrible late tackle.
ashton should have smashed him in the face rather than pushing him.

Either we are watching different clips or you are smoking something AA.

I though exactly the same thing, but then I watched the clip again. AA is correct, catches him on the chest.

As a ref, since it had be dealt with at the time,he gets away with it! How on earth that was a double yellow I will never know.

I believe that presidence has been broken duckman so he could still be cited, I suppose it will depend on whether Johnson wants him for the world cup warm up matches or not!!!!

Ashton pushed Manu and had his fist clenched ready to smack him one, Manu was just quicker at landing the first punch.

Admittedly he did overreact and probably should have just pushed him back

I was at the game and the tension was very high with both teams struggling to get points on the board, there were also quite a few low tackle by saints and more scuffles than usual

Manu is a good player but being his first season and only 19 has much growing up to do

I think that although Manu reacted with a little too much grunt, he is one for the future England set up. It would be nice to see a player having the front to stand up to the South Africans, Australians and Kiwis. Especially as he is one of the backs. He just has to get clever about when he throws his fists around.

Total loss of control from Tuilagi – should be 8-12 weeks.

Its not the amateur era, you can’t rain punches down on somebody who isn’t even throwing any back. As for standing up to the Southern Hemisphere teams – none of Woodward’s guys were that stupid or ill-disciplined, and they did alright.

none of Woodward’s guys were that stupid or ill-disciplined, and they did alright.

cough Johnson cough, wasnt it Marshall he smacked? Game was played at old trafford or something as I remember

Northamptons Dorian West comments

It made a massive difference to the game and we feel hard-done-by,” West told The Mirror.

“We certainly didn’t get the rub of the green. What the officials saw I just don’t know. It’s unbelievable. The tackle without the ball was enough to warrant a yellow card.

“For the young lad to react like he did, it was terrible.

“Ashton didn’t respond, but that’s not how the touch judge reported it. He said he had seen Ashton throwing punches.

“How did he see that when it did not happen? It’s a big thing. You are either in the final of a competition or you are not.

“We would have fancied our chances against them for 50 minutes with 14 men.”

OMG why would you admit that you’d fancy your teams chances if the opposition are down to 14…. it’s like admitting you stand no chance against a full team of Tigers

I think all he is saying is that he is pretty confident they would have won with a man advantage.

I thought this thread was going to be about:

OMG why would you admit that you’d fancy your teams chances if the opposition are down to 14.

Duh! cos he said that after the game and they lost!

I thought it was a great game, shame all anyone talks about was the punch(es). Sky had an amazing slo-mo of the incident. If Manu had used his knuckles to punch it could’ve been much nastier.

From the Independant

with the caption

Chris Ashton is held back after being punched by Manu Tuilagi

Surely it should be “held up” after….

so Johnson is considering Tuilagi for the summer warm up matches!!! **** joke.

5 weeks about right to me – he misses the premiership final.

10 weeks reduced to five. Because –

– Guilty plead.
– Previous good record (Most 19 year olds probably don’t have too much history).
– He was provoked by Ashton’s push (I find this one the strangest as Ashton was provoked by his late tackle)

Its the lack of consistency that boils my piss. Paul O’Connel got 4 weeks for being held back and swinging his arm in the general direction of JT, Tuilagi aimed 3 vicous punches at someone who didnt fight back, but because he might be wanted by england in a world cup year and its the english rfu deciding he just gets 5. Richie Rees got 12 weeks for accidental contact with the eye of Hartley but he did it in a euro game so the welsh union could decide punishment. The man God Henson got 12 weeks for elbowing in the general direction of someone trying to take him out off the ball.

But if they cited and suspended everyone in that match for late tackles then there’d be no England squad.

Ashton shouldn’t have reacted but try playing rugby and not reacting to a late tackle like that (esp one that takes you off your feet and is done by a guy much younger than you) while you’re at it try not reacting to the shove in the. Bet if it had been a face to face shove the reaction would be different (still punches though :-)) but a shove in the back is cowardly.

The high late tackle was not that bad – plenty worse even in that match. worth a penalty maybe a yellow. Ashton is a stroppy get and retaliated – his push worth a penalty maybe a yellow. Tuilagi 3 punches – worth a yellow probably a red.

Henson probably asked for 12 weeks as fancied an extended break or didn’t want to risk smudging his orange glow?

The RFU disciplinary process is a joke. I can’t believe they tried to claim he was provoked when he actually started the incident himself, with the tackle off the ball.

As usual with the RFU, its not what you do, its who you are. Cockerill spent the majority of the match shouting and swearing at the referee’s assessor, in front of a stand full of supporters. Where is his sanction? The RFU aren’t interested. Its all the more pathetic when you consider the way they hounded Brendan Venter and invoked the “spirit of the game” at every turn, when it suited them. Delon Armitage is serving a long ban for verbally abusing a doping officer. Somehow Cockerill is different.

Tuilagi 3 punches – worth a yellow probably a red.

sorry cannot agree, 3 puches to someone not fighting back is a certain red and should be a hefty ban, not a one match ban which it effectivley is. Paul O’Connel got more matches missed for a swinging arm at someone holding him back, its a joke

He got a week less but missed 4 games compared to 1, its a joke

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O8s5J9yjxg[/video]

As a ref,I would have shown a yellow for the swinging arm. The game was getting a bit tasty with a couple of tit-for-tat incidents in the few mins up to then,that would have collected the thoughts of both teams, 10 min in the bin in a semi,with the points loss that usually means, too much to risk in a tight game for a free shot. Shove in the back in the context of what had just happened,a telling off as Tuilagi took the walk, no reversal or card.
The punches thrown by Tuilagi, yellow,red,red. Rules are that striking in the face is a red, on the ground, the reality is that we take other factors such as damage,provocation,intent into account.I would suggest the damage was severe,the provocation mild and the intent severe.
Up here,anything dealt with by a ref,is finished,you cannot then cite the incident.IMO Tuilagi has had two results in the last week, both on Sat and yesterday.

Yeah, he should’ve got more, but I’m glad he didn’t cos I want to see him play. He’s entertaining! I suspect he’s learned his lesson too.
A bit like ol’ Beckham getting sent off against the Argies.