Bristol Bears lock Josh Caulfield will face no further punishment for his red card against Connacht in the Champions Cup, the EPCR has confirmed.
Caulfield has had his red card overturned following an independent Disciplinary Hearing.
Referee Pierre Brousset gave the second-rower his marching orders in the 13th minute of the clash on Friday evening for stamping on Connacht prop Finlay Bealham.
went on to lose , with the Irish province scoring four tries to the Bears’ one.
The decision to send Caulfield off split the , at the time, but the Disciplinary Hearing concluded that it was an act of foul play but did not warrant a red card.
Caulfield was charged with contravening Law 9.12: “A player must not stamp on an opponent.”
Under World Rugby’s Sanctions for Foul Play, Law 9.12, stamping or trampling, carries the following sanction entry points – Low End: 2 weeks; Mid-range: 6 weeks; Top end: 12 to 52 weeks.
“An independent Disciplinary Committee comprising Paul Thomas (Wales), Chair, Marcello D’Orey (Portugal) and Stefan Terblanche (South Africa) viewed footage of the incident and heard evidence by video conference from Caulfield who did not accept that he had committed an act of foul play,” an EPCR statement read.
“The committee also heard submissions from the player’s legal representative, Sam Jones.
Also present on the conference call were the Bristol Bears’ Director of Rugby, Pat Lam, the Bristol Bears’ Team Manager, Jack Targett, and the EPCR Disciplinary Officer, Liam McTiernan.
“The committee determined that Caulfield had committed an act of foul play, however, it found that the offence did not warrant a red card, and the red card decision was therefore overturned. Caulfield is free to play immediately, and EPCR has the right to appeal the decision.”
The decision means that the lock will be available for Bristol’s upcoming Premiership derby against Bath on Saturday.
