Shocking new footage has emerged from England's Nations Championship victory over Argentina, showing wing Tommy Freeman appearing to be punched in the face just minutes into the match. The incident occurred during a melee in the right-hand corner of the pitch after Freeman scored an early try.
Early Try Sparks Tensions
Steve Borthwick's side followed up their demolition of Fiji last weekend with a dramatic 31-24 win over the Pumas in Santiago del Estero on Saturday. The ill-tempered clash produced eight tries and seven yellow cards. Set against the backdrop of last week's controversial FIFA World Cup meeting between the two nations, there was plenty of niggle throughout the match.
Northampton Saints star Freeman gave England an early lead as he collected Fin Smith's looping kick to dive over in the corner with less than four minutes on the clock. After failing to stop the try, Argentina wing Matteo Carreras grappled with Freeman on the floor. The England back reacted angrily, grabbing his opponent by the collar as the two men got to their feet. More players quickly joined in, forming a melee.
Missed Incident
While referee Angus Gardner was ultimately able to break the two sides up, new footage shared on social media appears to show Argentina fly-half Tomas Albornoz making contact with Freeman's face with a swinging arm as he ran over to back up his teammate. Freeman can be seen reacting to the strike before pushing Albornoz away to continue confronting Carreras. The incident was not caught by officials or reviewed by the TMO.
Fans on social media have described the incident as a "cheap shot" and questioned why it was not brought to the attention of the referee, while calling on World Rugby to take action. Whether Albornoz will be cited for the incident remains to be seen.
Albornoz Faces Further Scrutiny
The fly-half could also find himself in hot water for his actions at the end of the game. After the Pumas were controversially denied a last-gasp try that could have seen them claim a draw, Albornoz appeared to make contact with referee Gardner as he protested the decision to chalk off Bautista Delguy's score. The visibly shocked official shouted 'hey, hey, hey' and ordered Albornoz to move away from him.
Under World Rugby Law 9.28, players must not make physical contact with match officials, and any incidents can be referred to the disciplinary process. Sanctions range from fines to significant suspensions, with a low-end entry point marked as six weeks and the most serious offences punishable by a ban of up to a year.
