Appeals date in 'Quins case set for Monday

An appeal hearing into the Harlequins fake injury case will be held in Glasgow on Monday, European Rugby Cup Ltd (ERC) have confirmed.

Winger Tom Williams has appealed against the severity of his 12-month suspension after being found guilty of fabricating a cut to his mouth during Quins’ Heineken Cup quarter-final against Leinster.

The ERC’s disciplinary officer Roger O’Conner has also lodged two appeals following the original disciplinary verdict. The first is against the level of sanction imposed on Harlequins, who were also found guilty of misconduct and fined €250,000, half of which was suspended for two years.

The ERC have also appealed against the decision of the original committee to dismiss misconduct complaints against director of rugby Dean Richards, club doctor Wendy Chapman and phsyio Steph Brennan.

Richards has since resigned from Harlequins following an internal club investigation.

The independent appeal committee will be chaired by Rod McKenzie (Scotland) and also comprises Professor Lorne D Crerar (Scotland) and Mark McParland (Ireland).

The original disciplinary panel used witness testimony and television pictures, some of which were not broadcast at the time by Sky Sports, to reach their verdict on Williams and the club.

The committee found misconduct complaints against Richards and the medical staff had not been proven.

Professional Rugby Players’ Association chief executive Damian Hopley was angry that Williams had been essentially left to carry the can on his own.

Williams’ appeal will thrust the spotlight back on exactly what process led to the winger feigning an injury and leaving the field with fake blood smeared around his mouth.

With five minutes remaining, Harlequins trailed Leinster 6-5 and did not have a specialist goalkicker on the field, having replaced Nick Evans earlier in the match and then seen back-up fly-half Chis Malone carried off injured.

A blood replacement was the only way Harlequins could legitimately send Evans, who had been struggling with a knee injury but was officially replaced for tactical reasons, back onto the field.

Harlequins engineered one late drop-goal attempt but Evans missed.

Television cameras had spotted Williams winking towards the bench as he left the field.

The player does not dispute the guilty verdict, only the severity of the sentence.

The ERC’s decision to appeal Harlequins’ sanction suggests they believe the heavy fine was not punishment enough.

If the appeal hearing goeds against them, Harlequins could find themselves thrown out of the Heineken Cup.