Healy the thug at it again

[L Smith]

Cited for a knee strike on Guirado in the Toulon game.
Repeat offender so should be banned for 8 weeks plus with no reduction, (imo)
Under World Rugby's Sanctions for Foul Play, Law 10.4 (a), Striking an opponent with the knee, carries the following sanction entry points – Low End: 3 weeks; Mid-Range: 8 weeks; Top End: 12 to 52 weeks

[Bill W (2)]

Wear a shirt and tie, plead guilty and show remorse. 10 weeks reduced to 5.

[Sajerj]

I have to say i was surprised Nigel Owens didn't send him off at the time. Listening to the TMO referral that didn't ever seem to be considered, which i thought was a bit odd given it seemed to be a deliberate knee to the head.

[Soggypitch]

Every now and again decent players get the red mist and commit an act of foul play, it's bound to happen in a contact sport like rugby.

But repeated cynical acts of violence (particularly those that threaten another players livelihood) should be properly clamped down on.

Healy is the one that cynically stamped on Dan Cole's ankle if I remember, plus lots of other incidents....

I haven't seen this latest, but if it is proved to be intentional, they should give him a proper ban.

[Noggs]

This is a link to the incident.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/c ... 90781.html

Player trying to move away from the contact area and literally kneed back into the ruck, presumably in the hope he would be penalised for not moving away. With his history it should be a minimum of 8 weeks.

[daktari]

This is a link to the incident.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/c ... 90781.html

Player trying to move away from the contact area and literally kneed back into the ruck, presumably in the hope he would be penalised for not moving away. With his history it should be a minimum of 8 weeks.

in slow mo that looks very bad and deliberate. full speed may be more forgiving for him.

[Sajerj]

On that clip it doesn't actually look as bad as it seemed at the time, albeit it still looks deliberately.

Also I have to say that the play by the Toulon player is pretty cynical. He is not trying to roll away, rather he is slowly clambering to his feet right at the entry point of the ruck obstructing Leinster entry.

Its a bit similar to the Dan Cole incident with Healy.

[northerntiger]

I think we are all getting a bit precious about this. There are a lot of cynical little bits of obstruction creeping into the game, which in the old, pre camera days would have been sorted by the players (much as Healy did) so it didn't happen as much. Now the initial offence is rarely penalized, and it is done in the knowledge that any follow up by the opposition is likely to be penalized or carded.

[Noddy555]

He may be a bit of a thug but Cian Healey has been one of the best in his position for the last 10 years. That includes his time as a junior with the Leinster and Ireland under 21's.

[Tiger_in_Birmingham]

He's clearly looking to smash the man for the lazy retreat but I've got to say it looks clumsy/reckless to me

[Skin_and_Muscle]

He may be a bit of a thug but Cean Healey has been one of the best in his position for the last 10 years.

So he was a world class prop even before making his first appearance for his province?

In all honesty, I think Healy suffers from the same issue as Hartley in that they both seem to snap when things aren't going so well for them (I'm not sure if this is the case with this most recent event). Neither seem to have the ability to make productive use of their frustrations.

[Bill W (2)]

He may be a bit of a thug but Cean Healey has been one of the best in his position for the last 10 years.

Is this a different player to the Irish International Cian Healy?

[Sajerj]

I think we are all getting a bit precious about this. There are a lot of cynical little bits of obstruction creeping into the game, which in the old, pre camera days would have been sorted by the players (much as Healy did) so it didn't happen as much. Now the initial offence is rarely penalized, and it is done in the knowledge that any follow up by the opposition is likely to be penalized or carded.

Its an interesting point about whether the reversal of a penalty is applicable in the modern game with all the TMO.

Why is the second offence more deserving of a penalty than the first offence ?

I understand it existed to prevent players taking the law into their own hands, but this seems far less applicable in todays game.

[Mjolnir]

He's got two weeks, according to Planet Rugby.

[Bill W (2)]

He's got two weeks, according to Planet Rugby.

Wore shirt and tie, pleaded guilty, showed remorse and bought the panel choclate biscuits?