Welsh international Aled Davies has been dubbed a “lucky boy” after escaping a red card in the Gallagher Premiership final. The 20-times capped scrum-half was sin-binned by referee Wayne Barnes after a shoulder to the head of Leicester hooker Julián Montoya in the 24th minute at Twickenham.
Commentating for BT Sport, England World Cup winner Ben Kay said: “He could be in big trouble here.” But after watching the replays, Barnes ruled the ball carrier Montoya was dominant so Davies’ actions were just below a high degree of danger and therefore warranted a yellow card rather than a red one. It was a call that didn’t go down well with Tigers fans, who made their feelings known.
Giving his thoughts, Kay said: “What they (the officials) are saying is the force is provided by Montoya, but there’s quite a few Leicester fans in this stadium who have watched it on the big screen not in agreement with it.”
Fellow BT commentator Austin Healey said: “It is a difficult one. We have seen quite a lot of them this season and they have sometimes gone different ways.”
Former Scotland lock Jim Hamilton made his feelings clear, tweeting: “Ridiculous tackle by Aled Davies. Lucky boy”, while ex-England wing Tom May said: “Has to be a red for me. Saracens dodge one.”
Daily Mail journalist Chris Foy said "Astonishing decision. Obvious red, surely?" and his colleague Alex Bywater agreed, tweeting: “This is 100 per cent a red card. Saracens and Aled Davies incredibly lucky to get away with yellow.”
Leicester made the most of their one man advantage during the ten minutes former Scarlets and Ospreys scrum-half Davies was in the sin bin, with South African back row forwards Hanro Liebenberg and Jasper Wiese crossing for tries to build a 12-6 half-time lead. At the break, BT pundits Ugo Monye and Lawrence Dallagio gave differing opinions on Barnes’ decision.
Former wing Monye said: “It is an interesting one. I thought it was a red initially. It’s straight to the head, clear line of sight. There’s subjectivity about the amount of force, but that’s Julian Montoya being knocked to the ground.”
Ex-England and Lions star Dallaglio said: “We have got the best referee in the world and he didn’t think there was enough force to warrant it being a red card. The amount of time a defensive player has got to react to ball off the top of the lineout is very, very slim. So I personally believe that is the right decision.”
