Fraser Brown free to face Italy after disciplinary hearing

Hooker Fraser Brown will be free to face Italy in Scotland's final Six Nations match of 2017. Picture: Ross Parker/SNS

Brown was yellow carded in the second minute of Saturday’s 61-21 defeat to England at Twickenham for a tip tackle on wing Elliot Daly but was subsequently cited by the independent commissioner, with the prospect of the offence being upgraded to a red card and a suspension being applied.

The player attended the independent Disciplinary Committee in London yesterday and accepted that he had committed an act of foul play, but argued that it had not warranted a red card.

The Disciplinary Committee, chaired by Jean-Philippe Lachaume of France, alongside Rhian Williams (Wales) and David Martin (Ireland), having reviewed footage of the incident and all other evidence, as well as hearing submissions and testimony from the Glasgow Warriors front-row and Scotland representatives, considered the tackle to have been dangerous, and therefore contrary to Law 10.4(e), which states a player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously.

The Disciplinary Committee, however, found that the act of foul play would have not have warranted a red card, and so the citing complaint was not upheld and no sanction was imposed.

The Disciplinary Committee also considered whether or not Brown, in carrying out the tackle, had infringed Law 10.4(j), which regards “lifting a player from the ground and dropping or driving that player into the ground whilst that player’s feet are still off the ground such that the player’s head and/or upper body come into contact with the ground is dangerous play”.

However, it found that not all of the necessary elements for foul play under that law had been present). The player is therefore able to resume playing immediately.