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Saracens' Tizard faces Diamond's wrath for season-ending 'cheap shot'

Hugh Tizard of Saracens receives a red card from referee Matthew Carley during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Newcastle Falcons and Saracens at Kingston Park on November 29, 2024 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Newcastle Falcons boss Steve Diamond has branded the illegal clear out that earned Saracens lock Hugh Tizard a red card and left Falcons centre Sammy Arnold facing a long lay off as a cheap shot delivered by an “irate youth”.

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Arnold has suffered a medial ligament tear and Diamond is facing up to six months without the hard running centre who has made a big impact in the Falcons midfield as they have ended a debilitating run of Gallagher Premiership losses with successive wins over Exeter Chiefs and Saracens.

Tizard took out Arnold on the side of a ruck in the 80th minute and was sent off with the Falcons player receiving a yellow card for head contact earlier in the ruck. Diamond, who is preparing his side to travel to Pau for their opening European Challenge Cup match, is now denied one of the rocks of his improved defence and he is not happy.

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Diamond said: “Sam is looking like it’s a medial ligament tear and it was completely unwarranted and reckless and it will be five or six months out. The game is hard enough without doing things like that and that kind of incident needs to be looked at. You had a young lad there (Tizard) who was frustrated, they were losing the game and in the 80th minute he has seen an easy target and effectively smashed his knee. Not good.

“I am not going to go too overboard on the lad who did it and the disciplinary people will make an example because they are trying to cut those things out of the game. We have lost a very good player in the last minute because of an irate youth who has come off his feet and it looks dreadful on the video.

Fixture
Challenge Cup
Pau
32 - 19
Full-time
Newcastle
All Stats and Data

“Those injuries happened in my day and we have taken them out of the game – injuring the opposition. It is a cheap shot and if you are coming like that – everything was wrong. In at the side, targeting the knee.

“A medial ligament is the lesser of two ligament evils and while we have a slush fund if we want to go out and buy cover, we have players who can play centre in the squad. There isn’t anyone with Sam’s skill set out there at the minute.

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Utility back Ethan Grayson is being scanned for a leg injury suffered in the Saracens match while Pumas lock Pedro Rubiolo is out for three months due to a serious foot injury suffered in training before last Friday’s victory.

Diamond also confirmed that England hooker Jamie Blamire signed for Leicester Tigers two weeks ago and will leave at the end of the season along with Rubiolo who is heading to Bristol.

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fl 1 hour ago
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“A succession of recent ex-players going straight back into the game as coaches in their early 40’s would prob be enough to kill it stone-dead. Innovation would die a death.”

Would it? I do think one of the major differences between rugby and most other sports - which we’ve been overlooking - is the degree to which players are expected to lead team meetings & analysis sessions and the like. Someone like Owen Farrell has basically been an assistant coach already for ten years - and he’s been so under a variety of different head coaches with different expectations and playing styles.


“The most interesting ppl I have met in the game have all coached well into their sixties and they value the time and opportunity they have had to reflect and therefore innovate in the game. That’s based on their ability to compare and contrast between multiple eras.”

I don’t doubt that that’s true. But having interesting insights doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be the best able to inspire a team, or the best at managing the backroom staff.


“Wayne Smith winning the WWC in his mid sixties three years ago prob means nothing to you but it meant a lot to him. It took him back to the roots of is own coaching journey.”

I don’t doubt that! But I don’t think coaches should be hired on the basis that it means a lot to them.


“The likes of Carlo Ancelotti and Wayne Bennett and Andy Reid all have a tale to tell. You should open your ears and listen to it!”

I agree! Never have I ever suggested otherwise!

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JW 5 hours ago
French bid to poach 109kg 17-year-old dual-code Aussie prospect Heinz Lemoto

Yes that’s what WR needs to look at. Football had the same problem with european powerhouses getting all the latin talent then you’re gaurenteed to get the odd late bloomer (21/22 etc, all the best footballers can play for the country much younger to get locked) star changing his allegiance.


They used youth rep selection for locking national elifibilty at one point etc. Then later only counted residency after the age of 18 (make clubs/nations like in this case wait even longer).


That’s what I’m talking about, not changing allegiance in rugby (were it can only be captured by the senior side), where it is still the senior side. Oh yeah, good point about CJ, so in most cases we probably want kids to be able to switch allegiance, were say someone like Lemoto could rep Tonga (if he wasn’t so good) but still play for Australia’s seniors, while in someone like Kite’s (the last aussie kid to go to France) case he’ll be French qualified via 5 years residency at the age of 21, so France to lock him up before Aussie even get a chance to select him. But if we use footballs regulations, who I’m suggesting WR need to get their a into g replicating, he would only start his 5 years once he turns 18 or whatever, meaning 23 yo is as soon as anyone can switch, and when if they’re good enough teams like NZ and Aus can select them (France don’t give a f, they select anybody just to lock them).

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