Wednesday evening, on the side of the Basque Country, the president of Biarritz, Jean-Baptiste Aldigé, jumped when he learned that the Toulousain Joe tekori had asked for a postponement of a week’s suspension. The second line Samoan had been excluded in early October against BOPB for a high tackle on hooker Romain Ruffenach. He must have left the field. Examinations passed afterwards revealed a ruptured knee ligament, but it is impossible to say 100% that it was only the shock between the two players that caused this serious injury.

On Twitter, Aldigé had held a festival, even considering that it was “time to review the mode of operation of some of our bodies”. A barely hidden attack on the NRL. Except that if Tekori saw his sentence go from 4 to 3 weeks, it is because the Toulousain decided upon his passage in the Disciplinary Commission, on October 13, to request Head Contact Process (HCP) – Request for coaching intervention. It has nothing to do with a “favor” from the NRL.

It’s time to review the way some of our bodies operate @LNRofficiel ?? https://t.co/MJAHRjBXqF

– Jean-Baptiste Aldigé (@jbaldige) October 27, 2021

Thuery: “We simply used the World Rugby rules”

It is a novelty by World Rugby since 1^uh July 2021 regarding citations / expulsions for high tackle and some may not have known. On the Toulouse side, on the east. “We knew that there was this possibility of reducing the suspension. On a simply used World Rugby rules. We had hoped to recover Joe a week before by doing whatever it takes ”, supports the defense coach in Toulouse, Laurent Thuery.

Upon his expulsion and his appearance before the Disciplinary Commission of the NRL, Joe Tekori and his club warned World Rugby that they wanted to benefit from this device. They filled a survey in which they mentioned the axes that the player was going to work from the first days following his red card.

Tackle drills and videos submitted to World Rugby

After returning from World Rugby, Joe Tekori regularly worked his tackle technique with several workshops and exercises. “Everything is based on the video of the fault. We saw that he was late on his placement, that the impact was too high. These are things that have been requested from World Rugby and a boss on it. We did support work, but also on stooping. Large builders like Joe need to be even more focused on this fact, ”explains Laurent Thuery, chosen by Joe Tekori to support him in this system.

These exercises, filmed, were sent to World Rugby, which was found to be compliant. The authority studies in parallel the quality of the work through these videos and it is according to all this that it estimates whether the device has been completed or not by the player. If this is the case, the latter may benefit from the postponement of one week of suspension.

A device that can be used only once in his career

Other factors should be known: World Rugby decides on the Monday of the last week of the player’s suspension whether or not to grant him the fixed remission. It is for this reason that the NRL only communicated this Wednesday, October 27 on the passage from 4 to 3 weeks of suspension for Tekori.

Furthermore, requesting the Head Contact Process (HCP) – Coaching Intervention Application system is only possible for a player once during his career. If Joe Tekori receives a new red card, he will not be able to appeal it. “Hoping that this doesn’t happen to him anymore,” Thuery prefers to smile.

Juan Cruz Mallia has already had a lightened suspension

For the little anecdote, another Toulousain has already received from this program. It was Juan-Cruz Mallia, expelled with Argentina against Wales last July for a high tackle, as indicated by Jérôme Cazalbou, high level manager in Toulouse. The center-winger had benefited from this one-week discount.

For Tekori, who has only played 6 minutes this season, this “lightening” of sentence will allow him to apply for the trip to Racing 92 this Sunday. And he is part, with Maxime Médard and Alban Placines, of the three options to be captain of the Stade Toulousain.

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