Ollie Chessum cleared for Premiership play-offs and Lions tour as citing dismissed

Ollie Chessum has been cleared to play in the remainder of the Premiership season after a citing against the Leicester Tigers lock was dismissed.

A ban had been looming for Chessum after the citing commissioner had picked up a high tackle made in Tigers’ defeat to Bath at The Rec.

The second row had been given a yellow card by referee Anthony Woodthorpe on the day after consultation with the television match official, but a citing suggested that his sanction may be upgraded to a red.

That raised the prospect of the 24-year-old facing a three-match that would have ruled him out of the remainder of his club campaign, including the Premiership final if Leicester make it. Alternately, Chessum may have missed the British and Irish Lions opening encounter with Argentina in Dublin.

But the independent disciplinary panel has dismissed a charge of dangerous tackling, deeming that the challenge had not been at a high level of danger and leaving Chessum free to play immediately.

He will therefore be able to feature in Leicester’s final Premiership game against Newcastle, with Michael Cheika’s men requiring a victory to secure a home semi-final.

Cheika will depart at the end of the season with former Tigers lock Geoff Parling set to replace the head coach at Welford Road.

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Parling will be part of the Wallabies staff during the Lions series, and Chessum admitted last week that his incoming boss had kept communication to a minimum.

Chessum said”: “[It’s been] very brief, just a short message – he congratulated me and he sent us a message about the result the other day. There’s been minimal contact but I am looking forward to working with him.

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“It is going to be a strange one, he’s coming over to Tigers but he is going to be part of the Australia set-up until the end of this tour. It will be a bit of a strange atmosphere but I am looking forward to working with him.”