Argentina's Albornoz gets four-match ban over England fracas

Tomas Albornoz, the Argentina flyhalf, has been banned for four matches due to misconduct after his team's defeat against England in the Nations Championship. The ban stems from Albornoz's behavior during the match, where he protested twice with the referee, Angus Gardner, and made physical contact with him before being restrained by his teammates.

Albornoz will miss the upcoming test against South Africa in Buenos Aires, as well as two home matches against Australia. Additionally, he will be absent from a fixture for his French Top 14 club, Toulon, against Stade Rochelais. Despite Albornoz acknowledging that his actions constituted intimidation of a match official, he did not consider his behavior as abusive, insulting, offensive, or threatening.

Both World Rugby and the disciplinary committee accepted his explanation, leading to the decision of a four-match suspension.