England and their Rugby World Cup rivals have been warned they face disciplinary action if they criticise referees on social media.
Players have been given extensive briefings this week about the strict dos and don’ts expected at the tournament in France. World Rugby have doubled down on online posts in light of high-profile incidents featuring the likes of Rassie Erasmus and Jack Nowell.
There is also a ban on players sharing posts from their individual sponsors as part of the contractual participation terms. On match day, players are only allowed to wear approved items or they face fines of between £1,000 and £10,000.
England were fined £5,000 at the 2011 World Cup when Manu Tuilagi wore a branded OPRO mouthguard. At the 2019 World Cup, Wales ended up in hot water when Tomos Williams wore the wrong sponsored shorts.
And England skipper Owen Farrell has been warned about wearing branded Trusox grips and has since switched to Umbro. England are confident of having a clean bill of health for their World Cup opener against Argentina, despite Courtney Lawes missing yesterday’s opening ceremony.
Players at the upcoming Rugby World Cup have been warned they will face disciplinary action for criticising referees on social media
Rassie Erasmus was suspended for two months in 2021 after criticising referees in an angry video
Elliot Daly, George Martin, Kyle Sinckler and Tom Curry all sat out drills on Friday afternoon, while Manu Tuilagi spent part of the session training by himself. The team fly to Marseille on Thursday for the crunch Pool D match, but assistant coach Rich – ard Wigglesworth expects all 33 players to be available for selection.
‘Courtney is a bit sore from training on Friday so we decided the best thing for him was to not sit in a chair for an hour or so then have to stand up,’ said Wigglesworth, when asked about Lawes’ absence.
‘He is resting at the hotel, he is a bit sore from training, the pitch was heavy because of the rain. It is nothing too serious, we are just looking after him.
‘Tom Curry should be good to go, we are hopeful everyone is going to be ready. We don’t know yet for sure, but we think we should be good going in.
‘There are a few little bumps and bruises like everyone has, but I think we will go into next weekend with a pretty full bill of health.’
England skipper Owen Farrell has been warned about wearing branded Trusox grips and has since switched to Umbro, players can be fined up to £10,000 for wearing non-approved items in the World Cup
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