To go by some of the more hysterical pronouncements during the Owen Farrell affair this past fortnight, the very concept of player welfare has been on the line. Ban him after his red card for a reckless tackle, so the argument goes, and rugby union has a future; let him off, and we will unleash a generation of delinquent psychopaths high-tackling each other into early graves.
The ugliest side of rugby in the age of social media has been laid bare once again. The personal attacks on Farrell – and on his father when he had the temerity to call them out – have been almost as astonishing as this idea: that the treatment of a single collision in a sport that has hundreds of them in each match will make any difference to player welfare.
