'All hell breaks loose' as 'straight right' goes unpunished in Super Rugby dance of the desperates
Updated . First published at
Fergus Lee-Warner will come under the spotlight of the Super Rugby Pacific judiciary after the NSW Waratahs lock appeared to throw a punch against his former team in Perth on Saturday night.
Western Force centre Hamish Stewart took exception to Lee-Warner clipping his legs while scoring a try and threw the ball at the 198cm second rower.
Players from both teams rushed in at HBF Park and Lee-Warner then had a swing at Force hooker Nic Dolly.
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Western Force and NSW Waratahs players scuffle after a try. Getty
"Now was it a punch, was it an open palm? You can't really tell," Cameron Shepherd, who played for both teams, said on Stan Sport.
"But there's certainly action moving towards Nic Dolly's head and then all hell breaks loose after that. I think that's going to be a bit of play that gets reviewed quite a lot, during this game and afterwards."
Stewart's try stood but experienced referee Angus Gardner awarded the Waratahs a penalty to restart the game because his ball throw started the fracas.
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Western Force and NSW Waratahs players scuffle after a try. Getty
Ex-international Morgan Turinui was surprised the officials did not pick up on Lee-Warner's actions.
"I don't know how you miss that if you're Brett Cronan, the TMO," Turinui said.
"I reckon Fergus Lee-Warner's thrown a little straight right there...
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"It sounds stupid - I don't mind this. It just shows no matter what the context of the season is for both teams, yeah, they don't like each other."
Lee-Warner won the 2020 Nathan Sharpe Medal while playing for the Force.
"It'll be strictly business for myself. We just want to go out and put in a performance that we can come off the field and be happy with," Lee-Warner said before the match.
The other Waratahs lock, Miles Amatosero, also got involved in the melee by giving former NSW winger Dylan Pietsch a facial.
Earlier, Force flanker Carlo Tizzano broke the record for most tries by a forward in a Super Rugby season.
Tizzano burrowed over in the corner for his 13th of the season, going ahead of Malcolm Marx, Folau Fainga'a, Codie Taylor and Hoskins Sotutu.
Outside backs Joe Roff and Ben Lam hold the single season record with 16.
The Waratahs went on to win the match in 'Super Point' extra time, with Darby Lancaster scoring a brilliant try in the corner for a 22-17 triumph.
The dramatic victory, in the 91st minute, keeps NSW's slim finals hopes alive heading into their final regular season game against the defending champion Blues in Auckland next weekend.
The Waratahs (26 points) are eighth on the ladder and chasing Moana Pasifika and the Blues (both 28 points).
The top six teams qualify for the playoffs.
