Referee wiped out by three players in top English rugby match as pundits in stitches

The official was caught up in a "Leicester sandwich" at Welford Road

Referee Craig Maxwell-Keys got a little too close to the action during Sunday's Gallagher Premiership clash between Leicester Tigers and Bath at Welford Road.

With the scoreline reading 10-5 to the home side just moments into the second half at the home of the Tigers, Maxwell-Keys was wiped out by three players as Bath were on the attack. Get the latest Welsh rugby breaking news by signing up to our free daily newsletter here.

With Ollie Lawrence in possession, the centre was tackled by Harry Wells but it was the inadvertant intervention from Joe Heyes that put Maxwell-Keys in a spot of bother, with the official hitting the deck, with Wells falling on top of him.

Replays of the incident had those in the commentary box in stitches, with Ugo Monye letting out a good, old fashioned belly-laugh, sighing the words "a Leicester sandwich!"

Footage cut to Maxwell-Keys walking away from the incident, shaking his head with a smile on his face as he took on some refreshments.

“My ribs are in tact,” he could be heard saying over the ref mic in communication with his TMO.

It was one of several entertaining moments during the Premiership clash, which also saw a squirrel invade the pitch following one of the all-time great try-scoring blunders from England international Ollie Hassell-Collins.

The wing looked certain to open the scoring for the Tigers as he raced towards the line from 10 metres out and under little pressure, but fumbled the ball forwards as he looked to dot it down.

The 25-year-old couldn't believe what had happened and neither could his teammates, with the stadium left stunned by the error and Monye saying: "So much is so good about all of this, up until [he drops it]." You can watch that moment here.