What are the rugby red card rules in the Six Nations? Do two yellow cards equal a red? How does the sin bin work?

THE Six Nations is into its fourth weekend and it has been a thrilling spectacle filled with a lot of drama.

This has most recently been displayed in England vs Ireland where a red card was shown to Englishman Charlie Ewels in just 82 seconds!

But what implications will the red card have on England and does will it affect them long term?

What are the red card rules in rugby?

These are most commonly shown for foul or dangerous play with the player unable to continue and the team not being able to replace them, like in most sports.

With tackling a large part of rugby, referees often need to keep an eye to make sure that players’ health and safety are not being threatened excessively.

These could include by tackling players targeting the head or producing tackles in the air – in particular spear tackles that see players tip their opposite number head first towards the ground.

Other acts of foul play include biting, eye gouging and stamping.

But unlike other sports, sending offs in the Rugby World Cup do not bring an automatic punishment of missing a set number of games.

Instead, the red carded player must stand before a panel who decide firstly if the dismissal was correct, before deciding their punishment.

The severity of the foul play could lead to players missing several months of rugby, in particular eye gouging, with former England star Dylan Hartley previously suspended for 26 weeks.

What is the new high tackle rule?

The new high tackle rule refers to a high tackle as: “An illegal tackle causing head contact, where head contact is identified by clear, direct contact to the head or neck; or the head visibly