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France’s Oscar Jégou Banned Four Weeks for Reckless Eye Contact, Out of England Decider

The decision renews scrutiny of TMO oversight alongside consistency in eye‑contact sanctions.

Overview

  • An independent panel ruled Jégou committed reckless contact with the eye(s) on Scotland’s Ewan Ashman, finding the act met the red-card threshold after a 24‑hour hearing delay and an amended charge.
  • Applying World Rugby guidelines, the committee set a six‑week entry point and reduced it to four weeks for mitigation such as no injury and a good disciplinary record, with no aggravating factors and a right to appeal.
  • The suspension rules the 22‑year‑old out of France vs England on March 14 plus La Rochelle’s next three fixtures against Pau, Bayonne and Newcastle.
  • The incident was not sanctioned during the match by the referee or TMO, having been picked up only in broadcast replays and later on social media before a citing followed.
  • France adjusted selection for the finale, handing a first cap to Temo Matiu and shifting Charles Ollivon to number eight, while Bryan Habana publicly criticised the lighter ban compared with Eben Etzebeth’s previous suspension.