Burger: 'Eben should have punched Mann'

FORMER South Africa international Schalk Burger says Eben Etzebeth would have been better off punching Wales' Alex Mann, as the Springboks lock starts a 12-week ban for eye-gouging.

- JOHN JONES

Former Springbok Schalk Burger during his playing days

Etzebeth was sent off in the closing moments of South Africa's 73-0 rout of Wales on Saturday, with replays showing his thumb in Mann's eye during a scuffle between the two teams.

The straight red card he received from referee Luc Ramos meant he faced disciplinary proceedings earlier this week.

An independent panel reportedly initially failed to agree on the length of his sanction, but the veteran Bok was yesterday hit with a 12-week ban.

Under World Rugby guidelines, the low-end entry point for "intentional contact with eye(s)" is 12 weeks, while a top-end sanction is upwards of 24 weeks and can be as much as four years for the most serious of offences.