Today's rugby headlines as 'liability' Owen Farrell ripped apart by England international and RFU must pay for Shaun Edwards

These are your morning headlines on Monday, March 28.

Stuart Barnes has labelled Owen Farrell a 'liability England can't afford' after the latest controversy surrounding his dangerous tackle technique.

Returning to action after four months out with an injury, the fly-half was widely deemed fortunate not to receive a yellow card after a no-arms hit on opposition centre Piers O’Conor.

Farrell failed to wrap his arms as he drove into O’Conor with a shoulder. Referee Christophe Ridley decided the hit merited a penalty and no more, with Billy Vunipola’s hit on O’Conor a split-second earlier meaning the No. 13 was heading downwards a tad before he encountered Farrell. On another day, a visit to the sin bin could have resulted, though.

Barnes was not impressed, writing in the Times : "For all the questions asked about Marcus Smith’s lack of size and perceived defensive weaknesses, Eddie Jones’s first-choice England captain has returned to the sport with the same tackling issues as he left it.

"There was not even a hint of arm-wrapping, which would have offered a display of legality. It wasn’t a swinging arm and it wasn’t malicious but if he commits a similar infringement in Australia this summer, England could find themselves in trouble.

"He’s as hard as nails. But until he can warn roaming forwards and charging centres out of his defensive corridor with the controlled violence of Jonny Wilkinson, his non-tackling technique is more of a negative than a positive.

"A solid shoulder seems a strange aspect to single out but the Test game is hugely aware of its audience and the obsession with health and safety occasionally borders on the paranoid. The game will ensure it does its best to protect players from Farrell’s edgy