RUSSIA BAN IS COMPLETELY JUSTIFIED

FOUR days after Russia invaded Ukraine, its national rugby team were suspended from the World Rugby Council. The Bears, who were in Ireland’s pool at the 2019 World Cup in Japan, were disqualified from the Rugby Europe Championship – effectively the Six Nations second tier – thus ending their hopes of reaching the next global showpiece in 2023. Earlier this week, Kirill Yashenkov, deputy chairman of the Russian rugby union, appealed to rugby’s governing body to rethink their disqualification decision. ‘Unfortunately, our arguments were not heard,’ he said. ‘Before the meeting, I had conversations with some members of the Council. Behind the scenes they supported our country, our Federation. ‘But three-quarters of the votes against us were gained. The World Rugby Council is under a very large influence of the British countries, which are at the head of all sanctions measures against our state.’ Good riddance to them.