Julien Dupuy’s appeal against a 24-week ban imposed for eye-gouging Ulster’s Stephen Ferris will be heard in London on January 13th. Dupuy’s Stade Francais teammate, David Attoub, will also be in the English capital on the same day for his reconvened hearing.
After Dupuy admitted the offence at the original hearing, his club had expected him to receive a ban at the lowest level in terms of intent, 12 weeks.
With mitigating factors such as his admission and contrition, that could have been reduced by half and seen him back before the start of the Six Nations.
Instead, European Rugby Cup’s independent judicial officer, Jeff Blackett, deemed the actions merited a high-level entry and imposed a 40-week suspension, which mitigating factors reduced by 40 per cent.
Blackett said that anything less than 24 weeks would have failed to address the International Rugby Board’s concern at the increasing number of offences relating to contact of the eye or eye area.
At the time, Stade president Max Guazzini described the ban as “excessive, very political and anti-French”.
He added: “[European Rugby Cup] wanted to make an example of a symbolic player of Stade Francais and of the French team which has never had a disciplinary problem.”
The appeal, which takes place before the Heineken Cup resumes on January 15th, will be chaired by Professor Lorne Crerar (Scotland) and also comprise Rod McKenzie (Scotland) and Pat Barriscale (Ireland).
Attoub, who is also accused of gouging Ferris, had his original hearing adjourned last month amid claims from his club that photographs of the incident had been doctored.
The ERC subsequently sent four images to a company at the University of Manchester which specialises in the analysis of forensic images.
Perpignan prop Jerome Schuster’s hearing for a flying head butt he landed on Munsters Denis Leamy in a Heineken Cup match at the Stade Aime Giral will also be heard next Wednesday.
The independent Judicial Officer Professor Lorne Crerar (Scotland) will hear the case on January 13th.