I didn’t think Lowe would go down that easily – Earls

MUNSTER winger Keith Earls has suggested Leinster star James Lowe went down easily in the pivotal incident that led to referee Ben Whitehouse awarding a penalty try to Leinster and sending the Ireland star to the sin-bin in Saturday’s controversial derby at the Aviva Stadium.

Earls was adjudged to have tackled the New Zealander without the ball as he tried to take Jamison Gibson-Park’s pass on the try-line.

Many observers felt the decision was harsh, with Luke Fitzgerald saying on eir Sport’s coverage that the pass to Lowe may have been behind him and that the penalty try was too strong a punishment.

Leinster scored another try while the Moyross native was off the pitch, setting themselves up for a 30-22 win.

“Obviously it was a split-second decision,” Earls said. “I do come in contact with him (Lowe) but he’s a big enough lad, I didn’t think he would go down that easy.

“But, look, if you go by the letter of the law, yeah, it probably is a yellow card but a penalty try? I don’t think so.

“Whether I was going to hold him up or the ball was going away from him, he was reaching, but that’s the decision the referee made.”

Meanwhile, Ulster flanker Matthew Rea will be hoping for some leniency when he appears before a PRO14 disciplinary panel over his red card for a collision with Cian Kelleher in his side’s weekend defeat to Connacht.

The player will face a disciplinary panel via video and while there is a maximum year-long ban for such an offence, Rea’s tackle is likely to be judged in the mid-range (eight weeks) and, presuming his disciplinary record is accounted for, he may escape with a month-long absence.