Schalk Burger: Eben Etzebeth ‘should have punched’ Alex Mann as Springboks legend concedes ‘I’m probably the last to talk’
Eben Etzebeth and Alex Mann scuffle and an inset of Schalk Burger
Springboks legend Schalk Burger believes that Eben Etzebeth was better off punching Wales’ Alex Mann during the latter stages of the clash at the Principality Stadium.
Etzebeth faces a potentially lengthy ban for eye-gouging the Wales flanker in the 78th minute of the match, at which time the Springboks were already leading 73-0.
Referee Luc Ramos was left with no option but to issue a permanent red card to Etzebeth after reviewing the footage of the incident, which clearly showed the Bok lock’s thumb in Mann’s eye during a scuffle.
After the game, captain Siya Kolisi was convinced that his teammate did not do the act purposefully, while head coach Rassie Erasmus said that the optics weren’t good and believed a red card was justified.
The blotch on the Springboks’ tour
Speaking on The Verdict show, Burger and fellow former Springboks Jean de Villiers and Hanyani Shimange reviewed the incident.
Burger, who was banned for eight weeks for an eye gouge during the 2009 British and Irish Lions series, admits that he isn’t one to really talk but did weigh into the events that unfolded in Cardiff.
“If there’s a blotch on the end of year tour, it’s got to be the discipline, three straight red cards, two of them we don’t agree with, but like you can’t say anything, but Eben Etzebeth’s is a straight red,” the former flanker said.
“We don’t know what happened before between him and Mann on the ground there, you see some video clips or stills, I mean, you can’t do anything about stills – you’ve got to go look at what happened. Eben will explain more.
“Eben is a big loss for the Sharks. They are going into the Investec Champions Cup now and then obviously have a big run. They want to set up well after they’ve got off to a poor start. They need players like that to contribute. ”
De Villiers replied: “So much happened beforehand. You see an elbow also kind of on Eben there, and Siya said afterwards, he can’t think that he would do something like that on purpose, but unfortunately, it’s just the fact that it’s in the face area.”
Etzebeth ran the risk
The trio returned to the incident later on in the show, reviewing the footage with De Villiers suggesting that something must have occurred to set Etzebeth off.
“Obviously, there is a scuffle here. It seems like a hell of a lot happened prior to this,” he said.
Former Bok prop Shimange added: “Yeah, that’s what I’d like to see. What happened before? What actually causes this?”
Burger said that Etzebeth was still in the wrong because he ran the risk of eye-gouging a player when he put his hand in the opponents’ face.
“That’s where he gets it wrong. He is pushing in the face. Something can just go wrong. Even if they freeze-frame it nowadays, and they freeze-frame your hand in someone’s face, you’re in trouble from the get-go,” he said.
“I’m probably the last to talk. I’ve been accused a few times, but it was silly. Also 73-zip. The game’s done. What are you proving? You’re proving nothing. ”
Shimange continued: “You see a lot of those push-and-shoves and all of that. So it happens. I think at one stage the ref was going to say, ‘Guys, scuffle. It’s done. The game is almost over. Let’s leave it.’ And then they went back to look, and obviously, the eye contact.”
“I think the big thing is that obviously he was frustrated, and something happened that triggered him,” De Villiers said.
“But the thing is, you just can’t get your hand close [to the eyes], and I can’t even think that he would purposefully go for an eye, but the fact that the hands are there; you run that risk of the fingers going towards the eye, you just can’t do that.”
Why Eddie Jones believes Eben Etzebeth’s eye-gouge was ‘a minor incident’
Better off punching
Earlier this year, Bok number eight Jasper Wiese was banned for four matches after headbutting Italian prop Danilo Fischetti during a scuffle, but Etzbeth is set to be handed a far bigger sanction for his actions.
The World Rugby sanction guidelines with regards to eye gouging reads as follows:
Intentional Contact with Eye(s)*: Low-end: 12 weeks, Mid-range: 18 weeks, Top-end: 24+ weeks, Max: 208 weeks
Reckless Contact with Eye(s)*: Low-end: 6 weeks, Mid-range: 12 weeks, Top-end: 18+ weeks, Max: 208 weeks
Contact with Eye area*: Low-end: 4 weeks, Mid-range: 8 weeks, Top-end: 12+ weeks, Max: 52 weeks
With this in mind, Burger and De Villiers suggest that Etzebeth would have been better off just punching Mann as he would have received a lighter ban.
Punching or striking with hand or arm (including stiff-arm tackle) have the following sanctioning guidelines: Low-end: 2 weeks, Mid-range: 6 weeks, Top-end: 10+ weeks and Max: 52 weeks.
“You can’t do it [eye-gouge]. I mean also, you can’t punch anyone nowadays, like what can you do? You can grab someone,” Burger remarked.
De Villiers chipped in, saying: “He just should have punched him.”
And Burger agreed: “I think a punch would have been better. It’s an issue now for Eben, the entry level [for an eye gouge] is huge.”
Etzebeth will learn suspension fate on Sunday or Monday after the independent disciplinary panel reportedly failed to come to a consensus on the length of his sanction.
