Springbok hooker Bismarck du Plessis has been suspended for three weeks after being named by citing commissioner Dick Byres under law 10.4 (k) for ”contact with the eyes or eye area” of All Blacks flanker Adam Thomson in the 11th minute of the first half of Saturday’s Tri-Nations Test in Dunedin.
Du Plessis appeared before Sanzar judicial officer Kim Garling at the Otago RFU offices in Dunedin on Sunday where video footage of the incident, evidence from Du Plessis and reports from match officials were used as the basis for the suspension.
Du Plessis admitted that his fist had come into contact with Thomson’s lower cheek and then, as it rolled across his face, his left-hand knuckle appeared to come into contact with the player’s face near the eye area but did not touch his eye.
According to television footage, there were no visible marks to the face of Thomson.
Garling said that ”any action by a player in which fingers, a hand or a knuckle comes into contact with the eye or eye area of a player is very serious and the IRB [International Rugby Board] recommended penalties reflect that because of the potential for permanent damage to the sight of a player”.
He found that, although the contact was unacceptable, it was minimal. Taking into account Du Plessis’s unblemished record, it was decided hat the appropriate sanction for the offence should be at the lower end.
The suspension is in effect up to and including August 3. This means Du Plessis will only miss Saturday’s Tri-Nations Test against Australia in Perth.
The suspension leaves South Africa with only one hooker in Schalk Brits for the Test against Australia. Brits was flown in last week as cover after captain and hooker John Smit returned home with a groin injury.
No replacement for Du Plessis has yet been named. — Sapa