Crusaders and All Blacks lock Scott Barrett has been banned for four weeks – probably the best he could have hoped for in the circumstances – for his high tackle in his team’s recent defeat to the Blues.
Hurricanes hooker Asafo Aumua is suspended for three weeks for his shoulder to the face of Gareth Evans – evidence television match official Aaron Patterson got it very wrong when asked by referee Angus Mabey whether a review of the incident during the match against the Highlanders was necessary.
And Josh Dickson, the Highlanders lock, has also been suspended for three weeks – a more predictable sanction for clear-cut foul play following his high tackle on Hurricanes prop Tevita Mafileo in the same match.
Opinion: Scott Barrett's red card form a red flag for judiciary
Barrett, the third All Black to be given a red card in the past four weeks, faced a ban of up to six weeks after connecting with former teammate Alex Hodgman’s face in the Crusaders’ 27-23 defeat, but received a discount for his remorse and guilty plea.
However, he was not entitled to the full 50% reduction from the top sanction because of his similar offence in tackling Wallabies captain Michael Hooper high during the Test in Perth in 2019.
Barrett will therefore miss the Crusaders’ Australian tour during which they play the Rebels, Waratahs, Force and Brumbies.
Dickson’s sanction during his team’s controversial 22-21 defeat to the Hurricanes in Dunedin was more straightforward. It was noticed immediately by the match officials, and, given his clean judicial record, he received the full 50% discount on his ban.
However, Aumua’s is a little more problematic for the match officials and in particular TMO Patterson.
Aumua's decision to shoulder Highlanders loose forward Evans in the face in a maul – missed by referee Mabey – was not deemed worthy of a penalty by Patterson despite Evans reeling backwards in pain, the long time he received medical attention on the pitch, and the clear evidence of a black eye.
During the Sky broadcast, Mabey can be heard asking Patterson: “Do we need an official look? No, you’re happy with it? Play on.”
Mabey then said to the Highlanders players, many of whom were unhappy about the incident: “We’ve cleared it, there’s no foul play.”
The incident also occurred near the halfway line during a crucial part of the match – the Highlanders, down to 14 men for 20 minutes of the match due to Dickson’s earlier red card, were chasing an improbable victory and while a penalty may have been out of Mitch Hunt’s kicking range, Aumua played a big part in denying Saula Ma'u what would have been the winning try.
Afterwards, Highlanders captain Aaron Smith was seething.
“We had a red card for a contact to the head and one of our guys blatantly gets a black eye and touchies and refs just walk it off like it’s nothing,” Smith said in the post-match Sky interview. “So, all we want is consistency as players and we’re just getting no rub of the green at the moment. It’s hard to swallow.”
He has now been vindicated, but it’s unlikely to be of any comfort; the Highlanders are still sitting in 10th place with one victory in eight matches.
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