Jaco Peyper

England fullback Freddie Steward has been cleared to play after his red card in Saturday's Six Nations defeat by Ireland was downgraded by a disciplinary ...

But while the panel agreed an act of foul play had taken place, they ruled there were sufficient mitigating circumstances – including the late change in the dynamics and positioning of the opposing player – for Steward to have been shown a yellow card, rather than a red. Steward faced a hearing late Tuesday after he was sent off by referee Jaco Peyper for a dangerous challenge to the head of Hugo Keenan that ended the Ireland fullback’s match in Dublin. England fullback Freddie Steward has been cleared to play after his red card in Saturday’s Six Nations defeat by Ireland was downgraded by a disciplinary panel.

Steward is free to play immediately after a disciplinary committee ruled he should have been shown a yellow card.

“On that basis, the Committee did not uphold the red card and the player is free to play again immediately. [Freddie Steward](/topic/freddie-steward)’s controversial red card against Ireland has been rescinded, with a disciplinary committee ruling that referee [Jaco Peyper](/topic/jaco-peyper) was wrong to send off the [England](/topic/england-rugby) full-back. Steward is free to play immediately after a disciplinary committee ruled he should have been shown a yellow card

England full-back Freddie Steward's red card against Ireland has been rescinded by an independent disciplinary commission.

On Tuesday night, the commission amended the charge Steward was facing from Law 9.13 which states “a player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. After consulting with his TMO, South African official Peyper suggested there was no mitigation and a high level of force but an independent disciplinary commission ruled there was sufficient mitigation to downgrade red to yellow. Freddie Steward has escaped a ban after his red card against Ireland was rescinded by a disciplinary commission that found there was sufficient mitigation in his collision with Hugo Keenan.

England full back Freddie Steward has had the red card he received in the first half of Saturday's Grand Slam decider against Ireland rescinded.

"The player denied that he had committed an act of foul play worthy of a red card as described in Law 9.11. "The Red Card was issued as a result of the Referee concluding that the Player had acted contrary to Law 9.13 (A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. (ii) there had been an act of foul play in breach of Law 9.11 in that the Player had been reckless in his actions and in his upright positioning as he approached and came into highly dangerous contact with the other player;

Full-back is free to play for Leicester Tigers after an independent disciplinary committee ruled that his tackle on Hugo Keenan only deserved a yellow.

On the field, Steward told referee Peyper: “I’m bracing for impact and I can’t go anywhere else. I can’t react quickly enough.” The England star had to adjust to the fumble at the last minute, and argued on the field that he had only a split-second to react.

England fullback Freddie Steward is free to play for Leicester Tigers in the upcoming Premiership matches after his red card in the Six Nations.

“The player denied that he had committed an act of foul play worthy of a red card as described in Law 9.11. Steward was red-carded as a result of Peyper concluding that he had acted contrary to Law 9.13, which states: “A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. “On that basis, the Committee did not uphold the red card, and the player is free to play again immediately. Having reviewed all the evidence, the Committee decided that: (i) head contact with an opposing player had occurred; (ii) there had been an act of foul play in breach of Law 9.11 in that the Player had been reckless in his actions and in his upright positioning as he approached and came into highly dangerous contact with the other player; and (iii) there were sufficient mitigating factors including the late change in the dynamics and positioning of the opposing player which should have resulted in the issue of a yellow card rather than a red card. The Six Nations released a statement confirming that Steward is free to play immediately after an independent Disciplinary Committee chose not to uphold his red card. Freddie Steward is free to play for Leicester Tigers in the upcoming Premiership and Champions Cup matches after his red card against Ireland in the Six Nations.

JACO Peyper will go from issuing a controversial red card in the Six Nations to being in charge of the Dragons' URC derby with the Ospreys.

Steward’s elbow inadvertently connected with Keenan’s head in an accidental collision between the full-backs in first-half overtime. [Dragons](/sport/dragons/) game for the first time, sent off England full-back Freddie Steward for a dangerous challenge to the head of Hugo Keenan at the end of the first half of Ireland’s triumph in Dublin that secured a Grand Slam. Peyper’s original decision divided opinion as rugby’s governing bodies continue their crackdown on dangerous play, especially any involving the head, in the face of concussion lawsuits.

Disciplinary hearing decides England full-back should only have been sent to sin-bin for tackle on Ireland's Hugo Keenan.

The people who post them are time-wasters but, hey, it may well be they honestly believe something bad has occurred. If you have come here in search of an easy answer, there isn’t one. How can there be when Steward’s collision with Keenan on Saturday brought reactions from fans and former international players that ranged from “play on, just an unlucky part of the sport” to “definite red card”, and all points in between. And the ever-present potential for a red card even when it is not agreed on by all who see it has the potential to shatter another World Cup, the highly anticipated men’s version in France this autumn, if a player makes a momentary misstep and the result is a bang on the head. But the hearing noted in its statement that “match officials are required to make decisions under pressure and in the heat of a live match environment”. [ red card against Ireland](https://inews.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/freddie-steward-red-card-2023-rugby-world-cup-2219887?ico=in-line_link) has been overturned after a disciplinary panel decided the referee was wrong to send the [England](http://inews.co.uk/topic/england-rugby-union?ico=in-line_link) full-back off.

Panel found Freddie Steward was reckless and there was foul play, so mitigation should not apply and the red card should stand.

Finally, there is an ongoing trial in Super Rugby in which players can be shown yellow cards and then the incident is reviewed off-field and potentially upgraded to a red card. If you are going 40mph – over the limit – and that happens, you are being reckless and don't have a leg to stand on. Jaco Peyper in that situation is following the framework because he views the incident as reckless and foul play - as have the judiciary – and Jaco has therefore rightly ended up with a red card. The Steward incident looks a lot worse in slow-motion, but slowing it down can help you see exactly what has happened. We need to trust them to make the right calls on the field. My understanding was, and is, that if you have foul play and a reckless action, then the mitigation doesn't play a part in the process. But I'm not sure he did, which is why I felt it was closer to a red card. Or, the framework needs to be adjusted so referees can apply mitigation. [it was a complete accident](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2023/03/20/blame-law-not-officials-freddie-stewards-red-card/), a rugby collision, then there is no foul play and it's play on. Watching it happen, I felt that if Steward had stood his ground and braced himself for impact, then he would have done nothing wrong. But if, [as the panel have found](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2023/03/22/freddie-steward-escapes-ban-red-card-rescinded/), you think Steward was reckless and there was foul play, then you are talking about a red-card offence. They haven't decided it was an accident or just a rugby collision, they have said that Steward was reckless and there was foul play.