Ryan Receives Three-Match Ban
James Ryan's 76th appearance for Ireland last weekend was ended by his 20-minute red card during the first half ©INPHO/Gary Carr
James Ryan will miss Leinster’s Investec Champions Cup opener against Harlequins next week due to a three-match suspension, which he has received following his red card against South Africa.
The Ireland second row was initially sin-binned by referee Matthew Carley for an illegal clearout on South Africa hooker Malcolm Marx in the 19th minute of last Saturday’s Quilter Nations Series encounter.
The off-field review concluded with foul play review officer Dan Jones upgrading the card to a 20-minute red. Having received a red card for an act of foul play contrary to Law 9.20a, Ryan appeared before an independent disciplinary committee this afternoon via video link.
The disciplinary committee was chaired by Wang Shao-ing (Singapore), who was joined by Bogdan Zebega (Romania) and Val Toma (Romania).
The committee upheld the red card issued to the 29-year-old lock. By applying World Rugby’s sanctioning provisions, they determined that the mid-range entry point of six weeks/matches was appropriate.
In light of Ryan accepting the red card, his clean disciplinary record as well as other mitigating factors, they applied the maximum 50% reduction in sanction, thus reducing the final sanction to three weeks/matches.
The suspension will cover the following fixtures:
- November 28, 2025 – Dragons v Leinster, BKT United Rugby Championship
- December 6, 2025 – Leinster v Harlequins, Investec Champions Cup
- December 12, 2025 – Leicester Tigers v Leinster, Investec Champions Cup *
* Ryan has additionally been given permission to apply to take part in World Rugby’s Coaching Intervention Programme, to substitute the final game of his sanction, which is aimed at modifying specific techniques and technical issues that contributed to the foul play.