RFU SHORT JUDGMENT FORM MatchBarkers Butts RFC Vs Nuneaton Old Edwardians RFC Club’s LevelLevel 7 Competition Midlands 2 West South Date of Match14/03/2020 Match Venue Nuneaton Particulars of Offence Player’s SurnameBoland Date of Birth 08/12/1989 Forename(s)Jack Plea Admitted✔ Not Admitted Club nameBarkers Butts RFC RFU ID No. 739628 Type of Offence Citing Law 9 Offence Law 9.12 - Strike with the head Sanction 22 weeks Hearing Details Hearing Date02/04/2020 Hearing venue Video Chairmen/SJODaniel White Panel Member 1 Mitch Read Panel Member 2Steve Challis Panel Secretary Rebecca Morgan Appearance Player Yes✔ No Appearance Club Yes✔ No Player’s Representative(s): Other attendees: KeithForename(s) Groom – Hon Sec & Club Disciplinary Ryan Plea Hatch – injured player Officer John Burdett – Hon Treasurer & 1st Team Manager Glenn Southwell – Barker Butts Coach List of documents/materials provided to player in advance of hearing: ChargeForename(s) sheet, Appendix 2 sanctions table, citing complaint, referee’s (Kulwinder Devgun) “Injury EventPlea Form”, statement from Ryan Hatch, medical confirmation of injuries including x-ray and Barkers Butts Disciplinary hearing documentation. RFU SHORT JUDGMENT FORM 1 Summary of Essential Elements of Citing/Referee/s Report/Footage TheForename(s) citing report states, “VeryPlea close competitive game with the scores equal a few minutes before full time. NOE are awarded a penalty and the NOE No 2 celebrates excessively. This is responded to aggressively by 2 of the Barkers players. The NOE Captain and No 8 Ryan Hatch tries to keep the NOE No 2 and the Barkers No 6 apart. Whilst restraining his own player and therefore completely unable to defend himself is headbutted by the Barkers No 6. The first headbutt does not connect with any force so the same player then has a second attempt which is much more deliberate and forceful. The NOE no8 left the field with a bad mouth wound and has subsequently has had 2 metal plates inserted during emergency surgery for a broken jaw. It is also possible that he may have permanent loss of feeling in this area of his face. The referee’s view of the headbutts was obscured but during the same incident he did see the same player throw a punch which didn't connect. The No 6 was Yellow carded for this attempted punch. The player came up to Ryan in the bar after the game and offered an apology. I have been advised that Barkers held a disciplinary meeting last night (18/03/2020) and have suspended the player for 10 weeks.” The referee’s injury report states, “The game was poised for grand finale with the scores locked at 24-24 both sides pressing for the win, the time of the incident was 2H 38mins. A kick by BB just outside their 22 went straight out, resulting in a lineout 2m outside BB 22. NOE threw the ball in and BB6 went in the side thus being offside as the lineout was not over, the whistle was blown straight away for the offence. This resulted in NOE patting the BB6 on the head, who took offence and a mini scuffle broke out. This then escalated with a number of players from both sides having 3-4 separate scuffles. I continued to blow the whistle and the BB6 proceeded to throw a punch. After the scuffles calmed down a number of NOE players, coaches and supporters were claiming that there was a head butt by BB6 to NOE8. I proceed to deal with the BB6 for what I had clear view of throwing a punch, but could not see where on the body he connected. He was issued YC and the game proceeded with a penalty to NOE. If I had seen the head butt by the BB6, he would off clearly been issued a RC but unfortunately I was unsighted of this offence. I have reviewed the video footage and can see at 38min 37 secs that the alleged head butt occurred. I was also informed (Sunday 15th March @10.37) that the NOE player is subsequently having an operation on a broken/fractured jaw.” In summary, the Player became frustrated having given away a penalty in the last few minutes of the game. He was vigorously patted on the upper back by an opponent and thereafter became aggressive and confrontational. The injured player (Ryan Hatch), throughout, was trying to pull apart Mr Boland and his own player, who had antagonised Mr Boland. In separating the two Mr Hatch was unable to see that on two occasions Mr Boland had deliberately jumped up, whilst grappling with him and had moved his head near to and then into the side of his jaw. Mr Boland’s second attempt was a deliberate headbutt to the face of a vulnerable opponent. It resulted in potentially life changing injuries, namely a broken jaw (which required emergency surgery, the insertion of screws, wires and a metal plate), nerve damage to the chin area, loss of feeling to the bottom lip and jaw and potential root canal damage. The player was unable to eat solids for a considerable period of time and was in a great deal of pain for the following days. The panel heard from Ryan Hatch, who confirmed he had been in severe pain for 10 days, the swelling had now gone down, but he had had two plates inserted above and below his jaw. He has stitches which will dissolve within 6 months and still can’t eat solid food. Currently he has lost sensation in his chin area and the left hand side of his chin doesn’t move when he talks. His two teeth may be damaged where the break occurred, but this will have to be reviewed on an ongoing basis to see if the nerves are dead. He was unable to work for two weeks, albeit he had been told he could be signed off for 6 weeks. Admirably, he confirmed he had gone back to work early due to the Corona virus issues (his family business are making parts for ventilators jointly with Rolls Royce). RFU SHORT JUDGMENT FORM 2 Essential Elements of Other Evidence (e.g. medical reports) Forename(s) Plea RFU SHORT JUDGMENT FORM 3 Summary of Player’s Evidence JackForename(s) Boland took the panel through the video footage of the incident. He said he was trying to pull the antagonistPlea (NOE’s No 2) towards him, to “rub his eyebrow with his head” and that this was so as to try and get a penalty for his team as a result of that player then overreacting and responding violently towards him. He said that Ryan Hatch had been doing “the right thing” by separating the two of them. He described himself as “jumping up and down like an idiot”. He accepted he behaved stupidly and that there was no excuse for it. He was “gutted” he had caused this extent of injury, he had not intended to cause any injury and he had not intended to make contact with the head of Ryan Hatch at any stage. He accepted knowing that Ryan was “there”, but said he was trying to get round him to the other person. When asked specifically, he accepted that his actions were reckless as to whether his head would make contact with the head of Ryan Hatch. Mr Boland was asked why he appeared to be moving up and down at least twice prior to his head making contact with Mr Hatch’s. He said he was trying to swing round or to jump around Mr Hatch. He said he didn’t have time to think that he was going to hurt someone, the purpose of his actions, he stated, was to get the other player to react so that his team would get a penalty. He said he knew the changes in height and his moving up and down “looked bad”, but again stressed that he did not intend to make contact with either of the players and his head. He described himself as acting like a “knob”. When questioned by the panel members as to what degree of control he felt he had during this incident Mr Boland replied, “Not enough. I was jumping around like a boxer. If I had been in control then it wouldn’t have been reckless (which he accepted it had been). Despite this, he went on to say that his actions were not violent or an aggressive loss of control. The second panel member asked why he appears to have slipped and then gone back for more? He said he didn’t know, he agrees he had gone up and down a couple of times, but stressed that this was not with “violent intent.” Mr Boland was then asked about the suggestion that as he left the field of play he had come into contact with his coach, who had patted him on the back and with him saying, “It’s ok. He should have been wearing a gumshield”. At that point the injured parties mother asked them what difference that would have made because he had just been headbutted and Mr Boland is described as laughing. He said there were a lot of “afters” from the sideline as he went off the field. He was trying to laugh it off, saying something like, “I’ve not been threatened by someone in a bobble hat before”. He said his coach asked him to sit down and that they had not been laughing to make light of the situation.