Tom O’Toole, the Ulster and Ireland prop, has been handed a six-match suspension, ruling him out of the first two games of the 2025 Guinness Six Nations.
O’Toole was sent off in Ulster’s URC match against Munster before Christmas for dangerous play after making contact with Alex Nankivell during a ruck. The incident resulted in a hamstring injury for the Munster centre, who is currently sidelined.
The 26-year-old Ireland prop accepted the red card during a disciplinary hearing, and the judicial officer, Sheriff Kathrine Mackie of Scotland, determined the offense warranted a ten-week ban. However, due to his acknowledgment of the foul play, his immediate apology, and a subsequent apology after the match, O’Toole received 40% mitigation.
Despite this, his previous red card for foul play against Toulouse in 2022 meant that full mitigation was not granted. As a result, O’Toole will miss four Ulster games and two Ireland matches—against England on February 1st and Scotland on February 8th.
The suspension was backdated to include the December 28th match against Connacht. Ulster Rugby confirmed that O’Toole, who featured in three of the Autumn Nations Series games and played both tighthead and loosehead, was expected to have had a strong chance of being included in the match-day squad.
Ireland’s first-choice tighthead prop, Tadhg Furlong, has been sidelined since mid-October with a lower leg injury, while Finlay Bealham has been performing well for Connacht. Other potential options for interim Ireland head coach Simon Easterby include Leinster’s Thomas Clarkson and Munster’s Oli Jager.
The following matches will be affected by O’Toole’s suspension:
- Ulster’s 7-17 loss to Connacht, December 28, 2024, URC
- Ulster vs. Leicester, January 11, 2025, Champions Cup
- Ulster vs. Exeter Chiefs, January 17, 2025, Champions Cup
- Ulster vs. Zebre Parma, January 26, 2025, URC
- Ireland vs. England, February 1, 2025, Six Nations
- Scotland vs. Ireland, February 8, 2025, Six Nations