Italy’s miserable afternoon against Australia descended into chaos after substitute Marco Riccioni was shown a straight red card for striking an opponent off the ball in one of the strangest incidents of the Nations Championship so far.
The flashpoint came shortly after Josh Canham had conceded a penalty. Australia’s debutant lock Massimo Amatosero then dragged an Italian player towards the touchline, with the scuffle spilling into the Azzurri bench.
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As tempers flared, Riccioni – who had already been replaced and was wearing a warm-up jacket on the sidelines – appeared to strike Amatosero from the bench area.
After consulting with his assistants, referee Christophe Ridley produced a straight red card for the Italy front-rower, capping another frustrating day for the visitors.
The dismissal had little impact on the result, with Australia already cruising to a convincing 57-10 victory in Joe Schmidt’s final match in charge of the Wallabies.
However, the incident will likely come under further review, with Riccioni now facing the prospect of a disciplinary hearing after being sent off despite no longer being on the field of play.
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