Analysis: Red card conundrum puts Northern Hemisphere in a twist

Analysis: The 20-minute red card trial in the Six Nations has been criticised for a poor decision in Paris. The argument doesn't stack up, writes Patrick McKendry.

The controversy over France hooker Peato Mauvaka’s act of foul play on Scotland halfback Ben White in a recent Six Nations match in Paris – for which he received only a yellow card but was later banned for three matches - rumbles on.

But perhaps not in the way many in this part of the world would expect.

Rather, there are elements in the north who believe Mauvaka’s headbutt on a prone White after the whistle is evidence enough that the 20-minute red card, now de rigour in the Southern Hemisphere but being trialled in the Northern Hemisphere, is not fit for purpose.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

To recap, Mauvaka’s act in France’s recent 35-16 win over Scotland at the Stade de France, a victory which sealed the Six Nations championship for Les Bleus, was reviewed by the television match official and deemed worthy of only a yellow card.

This is despite the act contravening law 9.12 (a) which reads: “A player must not… strike with any part of the arm, shoulder, head or knee(s).”

It is highly likely Mauvaka was saved by a lack of television angles – widely known to be a common experience in Paris when a French player is being scrutinised – but, regardless, it was clear that the No.2 had indulged in a premeditated act that deserved a straight red.

Under the red card law being trialled in the Six Nations, Mauvaka could have been replaced after 20 minutes, but, crucially, the referee retains the ability to issue a full and permanent red card for "deliberate and dangerous acts of foul play".

This would appear very much in that category.

Had a permanent red card been shown to Mauvaka for his act in the 21st minute, the result of the game may have been very different and the championship won instead by England.

This important distinction was apparently missed by former Ireland forward Bernard Jackman, who wrote in a recent Irish Independent newspaper column: “One change that hasn’t worked is the 20-minute red card.

“If we want to make the game safer, then dangerous acts of foul play need to be punished with a straight red and the team has to face the jeopardy that comes with it.

“I saw no mitigation [in the Mauvaka incident]. It was after the whistle and the French player was out of control. The fact that the official’s decision was just a 10-minute yellow helped France to win the game.

“While they are worthy champions, acts like this need to be punished in the moment. We are heading down a slippery slope if we put entertainment ahead of safety.”

Jackman’s reference to entertainment is World Rugby’s wish to “punish the player, not the team” with a 20-minute red card. Other unwitting victims of permanent red cards are viewers who are likely to watch a lopsided game as a result.

Red cards are more common due to World Rugby’s crackdown on protecting players’ heads (and, more particularly, brains), but many are issued for accidents such as non-intentional high tackles in high-impact and dynamic situations, such as Sam Cane’s red in the 2023 World Cup final for a high shot on Jesse Kriel.

Cane, dismissed in the 29th minute, was the first man to be sent off in a World Cup final. Ironically, Boks skipper Siya Kolisi was only yellow carded in the same match for a similar act. Indeed, Kolisi appeared to have more time to react to his tackle on Ardie Savea than Cane did.

Related is Englishwoman Lydia Thompson's red card in the women’s World Cup final against New Zealand in 2022 when she tackled Portia Woodman high after 18 minutes.

Both matches went against type in that they were extremely close affairs despite the victors' numerical advantages; the Springboks beating the All Blacks 12-11 and the Black Ferns holding out England 34-31.

There is irony, too, in that such egregious acts of foul play such as Mauvaka’s are rare now.

The failure was in the decision making by the officials, not the sanction.