'Receipts are taken': Blatant Queensland punch that the important people missed
Updated . First published at
Joe Brial will be free to play against the Highlanders in round three after his punch to Daniel Botha's face escaped the attention of Super Rugby Pacific officials.
Queensland Reds enforcer Brial contributed a try and an unlikely try assist in Friday's 36-12 loss to the NSW Waratahs.
The 24-year-old flanker was being held down in a ruck by Tom Lambert when he struck ball carrier Botha forcefully in the face with a closed fist.
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Jake Gordon points out the punch. Stan
Waratahs captain Jake Gordon pointed out the incident to referee Paul Williams but there was no action from him or TMO Aaron Paterson.
Super Rugby then announced on Monday that there "are no disciplinary matters resulting from round one fixtures."
Mike O'Leary was the citing commissioner for the match.
"How have they missed this?" an incredulous Sean Maloney questioned on Stan Sport's Between Two Posts.
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Joe Brial's punch goes unpunished in the Waratahs vs Reds game. Stan
"To be clear, that should have gone to judiciary," Morgan Turinui said.
"You should plead your case for that. You can go in and plead and go, 'I couldn't see it, all this sort of stuff,' but an act like that - you think you'll probably get cited...
"It's got Botha on the nose. If I'm Brial, I'm saying 'I can't see, I'm being held, I've got no idea.' Yeah, that's a good shot."
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Waratahs prop Botha played on.
"I think they could have cited it," former NSW captain Michael Hooper said.
"This is stuff that happens in rucks, right? Not in the sense that it's good - a punch being thrown - but here's an element of what you can get away with in the game."
Hooper was already looking forward to the rematch in Brisbane in round five.
"OK, the citing commission might have missed it. But Jake Gordon's pointing, they didn't miss it... receipts are taken."
If he can improve his discipline, Brial looks a strong chance to make his Wallabies debut this year.
Joe Brial (left) played for New Zealand under-20s. Instagram
He played for the New Zealand under-20 team in 2022 before the Reds lured him back across the ditch the following year.
That will be amusing to Kiwis who remember his firebrand father, Michael, infamously unleashing a flurry of punches on All Blacks great Frank Bunce in 1996.
Michael Brial attacks Frank Bunce. Fairfax
Meanwhile, Super Rugby officials released a statement on Monday admitting that Tupou Vaa'i's try for the Chiefs on Saturday should not have stood.
The Test lock jumped over the top of the Blues' try-line defence - NFL 'superman' style - to score a crucial five points in the Chiefs' 19-15 win at Eden Park.
It was similar to Dan Sheehan's controversial try for the British and Irish Lions at the MCG last year.
Wide World of Sports asked Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt about Sheehan's score after the Lions' series-clinching 29-26 win.
"It's illegal to jump the tackle, but he dived over. I guess what it now challenges World Rugby to do is if we get two guys going in to go low, and a guy dives over like that, he's pretty much head first," Schmidt replied.
"So what do we do to stop him scoring, apart from stopping his head? Because there's not much else you can do. I feel for the players because they get backed into a bit of a corner around head contact."
Super Rugby's round one review determined that Vaa'i's actions constituted leaving the ground to avoid a tackle, rather than simply diving forward to score a try, and that as a result the try should not have been awarded.
"In principle, in a try scoring situation, if the action is deemed to be a dive forward for a try, then it should be permitted," they said.
"If a player is deemed to have left the ground to avoid a tackle; or to jump, or hurdle a potential tackler, then this is dangerous play and should be sanctioned accordingly."
That will come as cold comfort to Blues coach Vern Cotter.
Coach Vern Cotter of the Blues looks on. Getty
Ben O'Keeffe was the referee in Auckland and Brett Cronan the TMO.
"It's good that they're trying to get the clarity in around it because it can put the player in a really dangerous position," Hooper said.
"That one on the weekend for the Tahs (Miles Amatosero's attempt), really could have ended poorly. It looks nasty, almost landing on his head there, so I'm glad it's out of the game."
