Bloodgate her cutting of Williams's lip to hide his use of the blood capsule.. On 2 September 2009, it was reported that Harlequins had escaped being thrown out of the Heineken Cup following the scandal when the board of organisers European Rugby Cup (ERC) said it approved of the bans and fines already handed out. The affair was dubbed by many in the media "Bloodgate". Leinster won the game 6–5, going on to win the Heineken Cup for the first time. Mark Evans, chief executive of Harlequin FC has said: Richards resigned from his post at Harlequins over an incident in
Rugby union in Niger Rugby union in Niger Rugby union in Niger is a minor but growing sport. The governing body is the Nigerien Rugby Federation (Federation Nigerienne de Rugby), which is affiliated to the Confederation of African Rugby. Niger was formerly a French colony, and the game was first introduced there by French expatriates. In recent years, the game has been played mostly by natives. As with many minor rugby nations, the sport is centred on the national capital, Niamey. Niger rates low the Human Development Index, which means it is extremely poor, and lacks the infrastructure that would improve its rugby standing.