Bath’s Lawrence denies cheating to get Mitchell sin-binned

Bath centre Ollie Lawrence has denied cheating or diving to get England team-mate Alex Mitchell sin-binned during Sunday’s 35-34 defeat by Northampton in the Premiership.

With only three minutes left, Lawrence attempted to break as Bath led 32-31.

With little time to react, Mitchell’s shoulder made contact with Lawrence’s chest and the force of the impact brought their heads together.

Lawrence slowly fell to the ground while he was playing free-throw, and referee Anthony Woodthorpe sent Saints scrum-half Mitchell a yellow card.

“It wasn’t bad enough, probably, for me to go down in the way that I did. If the ref suspected foul play, I could have continued if I had allowed him to pull it back later, but regardless of whether my judgment was clouded, I still felt hit head on head and slammed down.

I had everything I had. I didn’t cheat the system. I didn’t dive. By the letter of the law, and for our own safety, if there’s a head collision, you’re allowed to go down and the ref can review it. “

With the final kick of the game, Northampton defeated the Premiership leaders 35-34.

According to the data collected on the sidelines, Lawrence, 25, did not have a head injury assessment because the collision did not warrant medical treatment.

” I don’t think I was cheating, “he added.

” People say I brought the game into disrepute. I would argue that I didn’t. I simply followed the law’s dictates. I apologize for that because, in the end, many kids value our sport and I don’t want people to think I’m a cheat or diver.

I apologize for my actions at that time because I want people to play the game, enjoy it, and play it in the right spirit. I’ll leave the referee to decide if there’s head contact in the future”.

When team-mate Finn Russell lined up the penalty that resulted in Lawrence grinning in the aftermath, Lawrence’s fans booed in jeremnation.

“In terms of my reactions during the game, I do smile after I make a mistake”, he said.

“It’s something I have done my whole career. It’s just a way for me to move past it and move on to the next step. No wink, wink, or whatever it appeared to be seen or heard from.