Rugby

Red card puts Owen Farrell in danger of missing Leinster clash

England outhalf is shown a red card during Saracens’ Premiership defeat to Wasps

Owen Farrell after being sent off by referee Christophe Ridley for a tackle on Charlie Atkinson at Allianz Park. Photograph: Getty Images

Sat Sep 5 2020 - 15:57

Saracens could be without Owen Farrell for their Champions Cup quarter-final clash with Leinster.

The England and Lions outhalf was sent off during the reigning European champions' Premiership clash with Wasps on Saturday afternoon. The Saracens captain was dismissed for a high, dangerous tackle on Wasps' outhalf Charlie Atkinson at Allianz Park. Saracens lost the match 18-28.

Referee Christophe Ridley made the decision without needing to see a replay, and Atkinson was replaced after receiving treatment on the pitch. A "mid-range sanction", which carries a six-week minimum ban, is the RFU penalty for "any act of foul play which results in contact with the head".

The repeat of last year’s Champions Cup final against Leinster is scheduled for the Aviva Stadium on September 19th.

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“I watched it live but have not watched it on the video,” explained Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall after the match. “He was chasing his own kick and was desperate to make a tackle and clearly got it wrong and he got his red card.

“It is what it is. He could easily have been out of the Leinster game for another reason — injury or whatever.

“He missed the last quarter-final of the Champions Cup because his wife was having their first child. We have got plenty of good backs at the club so we will just rearrange our back line a little bit and get on with it.

“He works really hard on all parts of his game and he has improved in that area. Today’s incident was a little bit different because he was chasing a kick and trying to make a difference to his team. We hope the player he hit is OK.”

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