Former England midfielder Fara Williams says West Ham’s Estelle Cascarino made a “schoolgirl error” when she was denied the chance to make her debut because of an earring.
West Ham’s new boss Rita Guarino, who was taking charge of her first game on Sunday, attempted to bring on Juventus loanee Cascarino at the start of the second half with her side trailing 4-0 to Chelsea in the Women’s Super League.
But the 28-year-old defender was denied permission to enter the action because she was wearing an earring that had been covered by tape but could not be taken out.
Football Association rules state that “all items of jewellery are forbidden and must be removed”, with no allowances made.
“I know you used to be able to have earrings taped. But the modern game doesn’t allow for it,” Williams told The Women’s Football Show.
“It’s a schoolgirl error for me, a new signing wanting to make an impression, and that’s not the impression you’d want.”
Cascarino was allowed to play without tape covering her inner-ear piercing during her time at Juventus.
However, the FA rule specifies that even using tape to cover any jewellery is not permitted in England.
Guarino said: “She [Cascarino] can’t take off this earring; it’s like a tattoo. She needs a doctor to take it off and she had tape.
“She played in the Champions League with tape, so I can’t understand how we missed using a player in a game for this.”
Former Wales defender Nia Jones said the entire situation was an “absolute circus” for West Ham, who went on to lose the fixture 5-0.
“She’s an experienced player, a French international formerly of Juventus and PSG,” Jones said.
“I was glad to see she didn’t get to come on at all because I thought that was a bit embarrassing.”
Ben Haines, Ellen White and Jen Beattie are back for another season of the Women’s Football Weekly podcast. New episodes drop every Tuesday on BBC Sounds, plus find interviews and extra content from the Women’s Super League and beyond on the Women’s Football Weekly feed
