By Martyn Herman
LONDON (Reuters) - Former Harlequins director of rugby Dean Richards has been suspended from world rugby for three years after governing body the IRB said the ban handed out by European Rugby Cup for staging an injury was global.
Former England forward Richards resigned from Harlequins earlier this month after an independent ERC panel ruled the team had fabricated a blood injury to wing Tom Williams during their Heineken Cup quarter-final against Leinster in April.
Williams is banned for four months for his part in the saga while former Harlequins physio Steph Brennan will serve a two-year ban. Both suspensions are also global.
"The International Rugby Board (IRB) has confirmed that the sanctions handed down by an Independent Appeal Committee to former Harlequins director of rugby Dean Richards, former Harlequins physiotherapist Steph Brennan and Harlequins player Tom Williams are globally enforceable pursuant to the universality principle," an IRB statement said on Tuesday.
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"The IRB operates a zero tolerance policy towards cheating of any form in the game and works tirelessly with all 116 member unions and key stakeholders to ensure that players are protected as well as the image of the game."
England's Rugby Football Union (RFU) also confirmed that they would uphold the ERC bans to the trio and that further action against the club, which was fined 300,000 euros (255,953 pounds), was possible once they had seen all documentation of "other incidents."
The ERC hearings had also found that Richards and Brennan had fabricated a wound or a blood injury on four previous occasions in non-ERC tournaments.
Williams left the field near the end of the match against Leinster with fake blood dripping from his mouth.
Trailing 6-5 at the time, it allowed Harlequins to send on specialist goalkicker Nick Evans as a blood replacement.
NEW EVIDENCE
Originally, the ERC banned both Williams and Richards from its competitions for one year but Richards' punishment was increased on Monday in the light of new evidence from Williams who had his ban cut to four months.
Richards, who won 48 England caps and played six times for the British and Irish Lions, told Sky Sports he was "shocked and surprised" by the increase in his ban, describing it as disproportionate.
The RFU confirmed that Brennan would be immediately suspended from her role as England's physio. Earlier on Tuesday Williams said he deeply regretted his role in the incident that has shocked rugby.
"I let down my team mates and the club fans, and I will have to live with my actions for the rest of my career," he said in a statement. "In deciding to come clean and do the right thing I have honestly tried to rectify this mess and repay the good faith shown in me by my friends and family."
While the case has shocked the sport, several leading figures in rugby said the fabrication of injuries has being going on for many years.
Former Harlequins and England coach Dick Best said he had raised his suspicions eight years ago.
"My attention was that there were blood injuries and people were leaving the field of play and they were playing the following Wednesday or Saturday," Best told BBC Radio Five Live.
"If you have sustained a cut bad enough to leave the field I found it very difficult to believe that people would come back to play the following week."
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; editing by Justin Palmer)
