Ciara Griffin of Ireland in action against Chloe Rollie of Scotland. Photo by Roberto Bregani/Sportsfile
Ireland’s chances of clinching a World Cup place this weekend have been boosted as influential Scottish full-back Chloe Rollie is destined to miss the crunch Ravenhill clash.
Rollie was yellow-carded for a tip tackle as they won a Six Nations tie in Italy for the first time this century last Saturday.
She had scored the game’s decisive try before being sent to the sin bin. The incident was upgraded to a red card following a post-match bunker review and she now faces a disciplinary hearing tomorrow.
The 28-year-old had had an unbroken streak of 61 successive starts until the start of this year’s championship, but an ankle injury forced her on to the bench for the opening two ties.
Rugby’s zero-tolerance policy towards tip tackles is likely to see her miss the game which is an effective World Cup play-off, as well as determining who features in the top-flight of the WXV later this year.
The Six Nations issued their confirmation statement this morning.
“Number 15, Chloe Rollie, will attend an independent disciplinary hearing after she was awarded a red card following a review by the Foul Play Review Officer (FPRO) for an act of foul play contrary to Law 9.18 (A player must not lift an opponent off the ground and drop or drive that player so that their head and/or upper body make contact with the ground) in the Six Nations match between Italy and Scotland on Saturday 20th April 2024.
“The player will attend the hearing via video conference before an independent Disciplinary Committee consisting of Richard Cole – Chairman (Wales), joined by Valeriu Toma (Romania) and Stefan Terblanche (South Africa).
“The hearing will take place on Tuesday 23rd April 2024 at 10am (BST).”
Ireland reported no injury worries following Saturday’s humiliating defeat in Twickenham.