Harlequins today confirmed that they had received the written judgment of the three-man panel that last month fined the club £215,000 and banned the wing Tom Williams for a year after an investigation into allegations of a faked injury during last season's Heineken Cup quarter-final against Leinster at the Stoop.

Williams, a replacement himself, left the field six minutes from the end with an apparent blood injury that allowed the outside-half and goal-kicker, Nick Evans, to return to the field with his side trailing by a point. The panel concluded that the injury was a sham but charges against the club's director of rugby, Dean Richards, and the club doctor and physiotherapist were thrown out.

Quins have until Saturday to appeal against the fine, half of which was suspended for two years, and/or the ban handed out to Williams which will see him miss the whole of the coming season.

"We received the judgement on Wednesday and we are giving it due consideration," said the Harlequins' chief executive, Mark Evans. "We have not yet made a decision on whether to appeal and we have another two days to think it through." European Rugby Cup Ltd will make the judgement public only when the disciplinary process has reached a conclusion.