Friday, September 8 2006 14:34 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

London: England centre Stuart Abbot and Northampton scrumhalf Johnny Howard are both facing lengthy bans after being cited following weekend matches in the English Premiership.

Abbot, who plays for Harlequins, has been charged with dangerous tackling during his club's defeat by London Irish and could be banned for anything between two and 12 weeks depending on the outcome of a disciplinary hearing on September 12.

Howard was cited for stamping in Sunday's (3 Sep, 2006) win over Newcastle.

Northampton have already given him a two-week ban for the incident but the 25-year-old will have that sanction doubled at least if the charge against him is upheld at next Tuesday's (12 Sep, 2006) hearing.