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England hopeful could cop huge ban for biting as Ma’a Nonu is cited

Toulon' New Zealander centre Ma A Allan Nonu looks on during the French Top14 rugby union match between Union Bordeaux-Begles (UBB) and Rugby Club Toulonnais (Toulon) at the Chaban-Delmas Stadium in Bordeaux, south-western France on December 21, 2025. (Photo by ROMAIN PERROCHEAU / AFP)

Sale Sharks hooker Nathan Jibulu will face a hearing today after allegedly biting Harlequins’ Will Hobson in the Investec Champions Cup round of 16 on Saturday.

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The alleged bite occurred 69 minutes into Sale Sharks’ victory at the Twickenham Stoop, as Jibulu lined up against his former side.

The 23-year-old will attend the hearing via video conference today, charged with contravening Law 9.12 – A player must not physically abuse anyone. Physical abuse includes biting. The low end entry point for a biting is a 12-week ban, with the top end punishment being a 208-week (four years) ban.

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Jibulu escaped any punishment during the match, having come on in the second half initially in the back-row.

Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson revealed after the match that England hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie appeared to have suffered a fractured arm in his two-try performance against Quins. A ban for Jibulu would mean that the Sharks will head to Dublin to take on Leinster in the quarter-finals on Saturday without their two preferred options at hooker, adding to their burgeoning list of absentees.

Match Summary

0
Penalty Goals
4
3
Tries
2
1
Conversions
2
0
Drop Goals
0
99
Carries
105
9
Line Breaks
6
15
Turnovers Lost
15
5
Turnovers Won
5

With Cowan-Dickie facing a spell on the sidelines, a vacancy will open in Steve Borthwick’s England squad for their Nations Championship fixtures against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina in July. Having already represented England A this season, Jibulu would be one of the contenders to receive a call-up, but a lengthy ban could dash any of those plans.

All Blacks legend Ma’a Nonu, 20 years Jibulu’s senior at the age of 43, has also been cited following his yellow card in the closing minutes of Toulon’s victory over the Stormers at the Stade Mayol on Saturday.

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The double World Cup winner made contact with the head of Stormers replacement Wandisile Simelane, with referee Christophe Ridley brandishing a yellow card. Any ban would rule the All Blacks centurion out of their quarter-final clash with Glasgow Warriors this weekend.

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Comments

7 Comments
P
PR 8 mins ago

Another mistake by Christophe Ridley. Completely out of his depth.

J
J Marc 25 mins ago

I struggle to find an objective for Toulon in the recruitement of Ma'a Nonu…

u
unknown 1 hr ago

England's front row options are falling like flies! Heaven help them against the Boks in July!

u
unknown 1 hr ago

That was Tana Umaga and Kevin Meallamu

S
SB 1 hr ago

Nonu’s tackle technique on that was horrendous lol

J
JB 1 hr ago

Ma Nonu. Talented player, but a thug. Remember the spear tackle on O’Driscoll?

I
Icefarrow 28 mins ago

Bro thinks all polynesians with dreadlocks are the same, lol.

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