Hurricanes captain Ardie Savea has been given a one-week ban after his throat-slitting gesture during a Super Rugby Pacific clash last week.
The All Blacks star faced a SANZAAR hearing after the citation for allegedly contravening the law concerning "the spirit of good sportsmanship".
The SANZAAR foul play review committee handed down the punishment late last night, although it wasn't technically for the gesture made in Friday's match against Melbourne Rebels halfback Ryan Louwrens.
Committee chair Nigel Hampton KC said he and others felt the action was close to warranting a red card but it did instead reach the threshold for a warning.
"Having conducted a detailed review of all the available evidence, including all camera angles and additional evidence, including from the player and submissions from his legal representative, Aaron Lloyd, the judicial committee found the foul play did not breach the red card threshold," Hampton said in a statement.
"With respect to sanction, the judicial committee deemed the act of foul play merited a warning as it was close to, but did not breach the red card threshold."
As such, with Savea's yellow card for "escalating" a conflict between players also to take into account, the committee was forced to bring up SANZAAR's disciplinary rule 6.1 which states: "If a Player has received two warnings or a combination of a warning and a yellow card during a match, he shall be treated for disciplinary purposes as if he had been sent off".
The committee said their review of rule 6.1 was what led to Savea's short ban.
"Due to the nature of the player’s persistent offending, with both the yellow card and the warning being issued for unsportsmanlike play, that an appropriate sanction for the player would be a suspension of one week," Hampton said.
"That was accepted by the player."
Savea faced a ban from two weeks upwards, though he did make a public apology in a post-match TV interview, saying what he'd done had been out of character.
"I can understand the fans are furious around the gesture that I made," he told Sky Sport.
"It's just a heat of the moment. It's footy. Kids are watching us; we're in the heat of the moment. Usually, that's out of character for me, so I put my hand up first, and I apologise for that."
It means the Hurricanes skipper will miss his side's upcoming match against the Blues before becoming available again next week when they host the Waratahs.
Savea's fellow Hurricane Tevita Mafileo was handed a three-week ban after being the first player to see his yellow card upgraded to a red card for dangerous play at a ruck or maul which resulted in a direct head knock.
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