Chris Rattue: Bundee Aki's Rugby World Cup ban against All Blacks is a farce

Low blow...a devastated Bundee Aki exits the World Cup while consoled by Robbie Henshaw. Photo / Photosport

COMMENT:

Forget the controversial dismissal of players during these World Cup games in Japan.

Ireland have been robbed before the quarter-final with New Zealand has even kicked off in Tokyo.

The three-game ban on midfielder Bundee Aki is the tournament's lowest point outside of the human tragedy caused by a massive typhoon.

Aki's ban is an injustice which hurts the tournament's credibility. It reeks of cold-hearted dogma.

I don't believe Aki should even have been sent off against Samoa, for an alleged high shoulder-first tackle on Ulupano Seuteni.

But however it played out on the field, there was time for natural justice to set things right.

It hasn't.

Players in the sudden-death World Cup games, with everything on the line, will be more confused than ever over whether instincts built up over many years are now - suddenly - all wrong.

This was no ordinary tackle situation. The ball was bouncing around with Aki and Seuteni zooming in on it. The Samoan first five-eighths got there first, by a split second, and Aki reacted with a strong upright tackle.

What was he supposed to do – approach the situation in the crouching position or suddenly dive out of the way?

It wasn't as if Aki had lined an opponent up, or had time to react when – as he made the front-on tackle – Seuteni had already and very clearly slipped towards the ground.

Many of us understand those rugby bosses must make the game safer, or be seen to be doing so. But it is not a one-size-fits-all situation.

It was a shock to discover that the powerful midfield back had been stood down. What makes no sense is the ruling stating "the committee did not accept that there was sufficient evidence of a sudden drop in the ball carrier's height".

There absolutely was.

I'd also dispute the ruling that Aki was "in open space and had a clear line of sight before the contact". He was in open space but was initially approaching the ball, not concentrating on where his opponent was.

What World Rugby is also failing to take into account is that this World Cup is taking place during a transition phase, when players instincts have not had time to be properly recalibrated.

In some cases, the game is right to ignore this point, when tacklers have plenty of time to line an opponent up. But in this case, they are horribly wrong.

The world tournament is, in effect, being heavily shaped by experimental rules.

The independent Judicial Committee was chaired by Adam Casselden SC (Australia) alongside former Scotland coach Frank Hadden and former Romanian referee Valeriu Toma.

Were their hands tied? I'm not sure.

But Ireland and Aki have been extremely hard done by. The decision is a farce, and we're all the poorer for it.