Two-week ban rules England prop Kyle Sinckler out of Six Nations opener

Kyle Sinckler will miss England’s opening Guinness Six Nations match against Scotland after receiving a two-week ban for failing to respect the authority of a referee.

Sinckler appeared before an online independent disciplinary panel after being cited for the incident which took place in Bristol’s Gallagher Premiership victory over Exeter on Saturday.

The 27-year-old Bears prop said to referee Karl Dickson “are you f*****g serious?” after the official ruled there had been no foul play in a tackle by England colleague Luke Cowan-Dickie.

Sinckler contested the charge but it was upheld and he is free to play again on February 9, making him available for the Six Nations round two fixture against Italy at Twickenham.

He apologised for the outburst straight after the game, admitting it was “not the example I want to be setting”.

“While Kyle Sinckler accepted that he used foul language at the referee, he did not accept the conduct warranted a red card,” the independent disciplinary panel said.

“The panel viewed the live recordings of the incident and were satisfied that his shout of ‘are you f*****g serious?’ was aggressive and directed at the referee.”