The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has announced an investigation into an incident involving the Television Match Official (TMO), prompted by suggestions that potential foul play may not have been reviewed due to its mention in TV commentary, as reported by The Telegraph.
In response to the incident, an RFU spokesperson stated, “The RFU conducts regular reviews following all games that take place, as will be the case for Saracens v Harlequins.”
Earlier, Premiership Rugby issued a statement reaffirming their commitment to reviewing all incidents, following their standard procedures each week.
During the match between Saracens and Harlequins, TMO Stuart Terheege was inadvertently recorded discussing with referee Christophe Ridley his reluctance to check a potential foul play incident involving Owen Farrell, which had been brought to attention by TNT Sports commentary.
The incident in question appeared to involve Farrell and Stephan Lewies of Harlequins.
Commentator and former England international Austin Healey highlighted the incident during the TNT Sports broadcast, with Lewies already having received a yellow card.
Terheege was captured on the hot mic expressing concerns about the timing and perception of the review, stating, “the problem I have got now is that it looks like Austin has instigated it, because we’re late, so I don’t want to talk about it, OK?”
Subsequently, when a replay of the incident was shown by TNT Sports, Terheege, with his microphone still on, appeared to request against it, saying, “Oh come on, don’t show it because it…”
Saracens thrashed Harlequins 52-7 in front of 61,000 fans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The men in black surged to a commanding 24-0 advantage at the break with tries from Alex Lewington, Theo Dan, and a brace from Sean Maitland.
Despite a response from Alex Dombrandt following another score by Dan, Saracens maintained their dominance.
The victory was sealed with additional tries from Lucio Cinti, Juan Martin Gonzalez, and Alex Goode.
“Re-imagination” – England handed easy pool for 2027 Rugby World Cup
The new format will feature six pools of four teams, with a round of 16 added prior to the quarter-finals.
This will enable the tournament window to be reduced from seven to six weeks, while promoting a rhythm that builds momentum across the pool phase and respects the same minimum number of rest days between matches as at France 2023.
If the 2027 Rugby World Cup Draw was made tomorrow, this is what the Pools may look like (based on rankings)
2027 Rugby World Cup draw (Current rankings)
POOL A
- South Africa
- Japan
- Georgia
- Hong Kong
POOL B
- Ireland
- Fiji
- Samoa
- Chile
