Dean Richards will be barred from coaching in England for three years after the Rugby Football Union confirmed they would apply the ban handed out by the ERC to English domestic rugby in the wake of the Harlequins 'Bloodgate' scandal. Richards received the ban after admitting his involvement in the incident, in which Harlequins winger Tom Williams faked a blood injury during the Heineken Cup quarter-final against Leinster last season. Williams will also be banned from RFU competitions for four months, while former Quins physio Steph Brennan has been suspended from his role with the England team for his part in the incident. An RFU statement today said: "European Rugby Cup (ERC) Limited has sent out a strong message that there is no room for this kind of behaviour in rugby. "That is a message the RFU will continue to repeat across the game in England and through our own disciplinary processes. "We can confirm that we will be upholding the bans handed out by ERC across our jurisdiction and that on this particular incident we will not be taking further action as we believe the ERC sanctions are appropriate."