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Wayne Rooney roared onto the scene as a player but is taking a more patient approach to coaching as the Manchester United and England great strives to become a top manager. Nobody could forget his stunning breakthrough as a teenager with Everton and then the national team, leading to his big-money move to Old Trafford in 2004. Rooney was a force of nature that won trophies aplenty as records fell with United before winding down his career with spells at Everton, DC United and Derby. The forward hung up his boots in January 2021 to take on the full-time managerial role at County, steering them through tough times during a rollercoaster start to his coaching career. The 37-year-old decided to return to the USA and has overseen a marked improvement since taking over then Major League Soccer strugglers DC United last July as he builds his coaching pedigree. “It’s been a great experience,” Rooney told the PA news agency. “Obviously I had the challenge at Derby County, which was a difficult one to say the least. “But coming out here has just really been about gaining experience and for me to try and develop as a coach. “I know I am not where I want to be as a finished article, but these next few years are really important in terms of me getting to grips and getting the best out of myself and eventually out of the players. But it is something I really enjoy.” Rooney seems to be approaching his coaching career with a calm, patient mindset – something that might surprise those that watched this aggressive whirlwind of a forward thunder around the pitch. “I think patience is key and understanding that you are going to lose games, you’re not going to win every game and staying calm in them situations,” he said ahead of managing the MLS All-Stars against Arsenal at Audi Field. “I think that’s something that’s really a strength of mine is understanding that. “I’ve picked two difficult jobs to take, to be fair, but I really believe that they’ll help me in the future. I know I am not where I want to be as a finished article, but these next few years are really important in terms of me getting to grips and getting the best out of myself. Wayne Rooney “When DC came in I felt it was a great opportunity to come out and keep developing. “A difficult job in terms of where the club was at, so I had to try to improve the club first of all and get them up the table. “And really just seeing different challenges, different things – obviously languages, culture, religion – and understanding all them different scenarios which could happen if you manage at the top level, which you will have to deal with.” Rooney’s knowledge and experiences have clearly made him an empathetic, considered coach, who is focused on developing himself as well as his players at DC United. “I think it’s a place where I’m coming to work and to learn and develop,” he said. “Of course, after games you can get frustrated and you are always thinking of how the game has gone but I think it’s the right place now, in this moment in time, for me to develop.” With his family back in the UK, Rooney says he lives a “quite boring” existence Stateside around a 45-minute drive from downtown Washington DC. He stays with his fellow coaches and the relaxed environment is allowing the football obsessive to try new things. “If you would have asked me a year ago if I would play with a back five I would have said no,” Rooney said. “Then I’ve gone to a back five quite a few times this season because of probably the quality of the players and it suited the squad more with the players I had. “So, there are small things like that which it has allowed me to learn and develop tactically with different formations. “It’s a great experience for me to come here and work and I think it will really help me moving forward.” Rooney has never shied away from his ambitions to one day manage at the top level, previously saying he would “love” to coach Manchester United or boyhood club Everton. But right now it is DC United that holds his full focus in a competition that feels like it is about to take a giant leap forward. Lionel Messi’s stunning move to Inter Miami certainly has the potential to take football in North America to new heights, while Rooney believes MLS’ true quality has long been underestimated. “I think it’s surprised a lot of people,” he said. “Still now I get agents phoning me up and saying there’s a striker in League Two and he’s ready now to come to the MLS. “I’m like: ‘He’s nowhere near good enough to come and play in the MLS!’ “I think that’s a lack of understanding of the league maybe and there’s maybe a little bit of disrespect towards the league from that point of view. “There are some really quality players in this league who can play at a high level. “There’s different challenges, there’s technically some great players in this league, athletically there’s some really fit players in the league. “It’s a league which I feel is still improving and can get better, but I think it’s really got to a very good level.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Wayne Rooney backs Declan Rice to be ‘leader’ for Arsenal Jamie Smith century puts Surrey in control against Middlesex Stuart Broad reveals addiction to Test cricket after taking 600th wicket

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Sam Cane became the first player to be sent off in a men’s Rugby World Cup final after seeing his yellow card upgraded to a red following a review from the TMO bunker during the New Zealand v South Africa match in the Rugby World Cup final. In the first half of the Stade de France showpiece, the All Blacks captain’s shoulder connected with the head of Jesse Kriel. Referee Wayne Barnes initially sent the captain to the sin-bin but, using the bunker system, that was upgraded to a red card soon after. The foul play review officer ruled that it was a shoulder direct to head with significant force and not enough mitigation to remain a yellow card. After the review was complete, Barnes called over stand-in skipper Ardie Savea to deliver the bad news for the All Blacks. He responded in shock: "to red!?" Cane was then seen in agony after learning his fate on the touchline, closing his eyes and rocking back on his chair. Reacting to the decision at half-time, Ireland legend Brian O'Driscoll was adamant Cane deserved the red card, telling ITV Sport: "Any effective tackle is a hinge at the hips, Sam Cane can have no complaints, there's no late dip, he has a clear line of sight, it's considerable force to the head and a very, very clear red card." While All Blacks legend Sean Fitzpatrick reluctantly agreed: "In real time, it's a red card, we have to get on with it." But what are the laws around head contact and high tackles that referees are following and how do they decide on the punishment? Here’s everything you need to know: What are World Rugby’s laws on head contact? Head-on-head contact in the tackle comes under Law 9 of the Laws of Rugby Union, which covers foul play. Law 9.11 dictates “Players must not do anything that is reckless or dangerous to others, including leading with the elbow or forearm, or jumping into, or over, a tackler” and Law 9.13 goes on to say “A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. Dangerous tackling includes, but is not limited to, tackling or attempting to tackle an opponent above the line of the shoulders even if the tackle starts below the line of the shoulders.” If a player breaks these laws and the act is deemed to be reckless or dangerous, then the referee is entitled to issue a yellow or red card. World Rugby also clarify the intent of the laws, stating in their guidelines that: “ Player welfare drives World Rugby’s decision making for zero tolerance of foul play, especially where head contact occurs. The focus must be on the actions of those involved, not the injury – the need for an HIA [a Head Injury Assessment] does not necessarily mean that there has been illegal head contact.” What are the punishments for head-on-head contact? Ok, this is where things get technical and debates start to occur. In March 2023, World Rugby issued their latest ‘head contact process law application guidelines’ to guide referees on whether foul play has occurred and how it should be punished. The referee has to go through a four-step process (detailed below) to determine the extent of the foul play and the sanction. The four steps are: Has head contact occurred? Was there any foul play? What was the degree of danger? Is there any mitigation? Step 1 (has head contact occurred?) is relatively straightforward, with head contact including the head and the face as well as the neck and throat area. If any head contact is made at all, we move on to Step 2. Step 2 (was there foul play?) is a touch more complex. The referees are told to consider whether the head contact was either intentional, reckless or avoidable – e.g. the defender is always upright. If it was, the tackler will be penalised and they move on to Step 3. However, if the head contact was deemed not to be foul play, the game continues. Step 3 (what was the degree of danger?) – judged from high to low – determines the initial punishment. A degree of high danger is judged on any of: direct contact rather than indirect, a high-force impact, a lack of control from the tackler, the incident occurring at high speed, the tackler leading with the head/shoulder/elbow/forearm or the tackle being reckless. If the referee judges there to be a high degree of danger, a red card will be shown. Meanwhile, low danger is judged as indirect contact, low force, low speed or no leading head/shoulder/forearm/swinging arm and a yellow card or even just a penalty to the opposition may be awarded. The final step, Step 4 (is there any mitigation?) determines whether the punishment can be reduced by one grade (i.e red card down to yellow card or yellow card down to just a penalty). Mitigation includes a sudden or significant drop in height or change in direction from ball carrier, a late change in dynamics due to another player in the contact area, a clear effort from the tackler to reduce their height or the tackler having no time to adjust. However, mitigation will never apply for intentional or always-illegal acts of foul play. What about the Foul Play Review Officer/Bunker review? Introduced for this World Cup was the Bunker review system. This allows the referee to issue a yellow card to a player, sending them to the sin-bin while play goes on, where a Foul Play Review Official (FPRO) will then take another look at the incident and determine if the yellow card should be upgraded to red, allowing the game to continue rather than a long stoppage to debate this. This is what happened to Curry against Argentina. The referee crosses their arms to indicate a Bunker review will take place. Once a player is in the sin-bin, the FPRO has up to eight minutes to review the decision and decide if it warrants upgrading to a red card. If not, the player will return to the field after their 10 minutes in the sin-bin has elapsed. Read More South Africa become kings of rugby with dramatic World Cup win over greatest rivals Sam Cane, Siya Kolisi and a tale of two captains at the heart of this Rugby World Cup final New Zealand captain Sam Cane opens up on Rugby World Cup ‘heartbreak’ after red card in final New Zealand v South Africa LIVE: Rugby World Cup final score updates as Springboks lead 14-man All Blacks South Africa’s Bongi Mbonambi suffers Rugby World Cup final heartbreak with injury South Africa vs New Zealand: Who is the referee for the Rugby World Cup final?

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