Eye Gouging Thread

This is getting common enough in rugby that it probably deserves its own thread now.

(Apologies to Farmer if he doesn’t feel it’s mainstream enough to justify thread status. Feel free to register your moral outrage).

Anyway from the two incidents in the Ulster game at the weekend, there’s one blatant and one that’s less clear cut.

Dupuy was clearly caught by the tv cameras and the photo below shows he was well aware of what he was doing. Think he’s in big trouble, doesn’t get any more blatant than that.

Attoub may have less of a case to answer because you can’t see where he’s looking but you’d have to say it’s more than mere coincidence when you look at the angle of his fingers and everything. He should be done too but he’ll probably get away with lower end of the scale for reckless as opposed to pre-meditated.

Dupuy

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/images/2009/1215/1224260711470_1.jpg

Attoub

I realise the opportunity is there to carry this out in rugby more so than any other game, but its outrageous how common it has become. I presume it was always common, but is just coming more to the public eye (for want of a better word) due to the proliferation of tv camera’s, but its something that needs to be stamped down on mercilessly at this point. The lack of uniformity in the punishment is one of the major flaws in the game. The IRB is a bit of a joke when it comes to discipline.

I’ve always found this to be one of the worst pictures on it I’ve seen, I know there’s others out there

Video of the eye gouging

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9aKZIh2CHc

Acts of blatant eye gouging like the Dupuy one above should carry a minimum sentence of a 1 year ban.

Particularly when he went back within a couple of seconds and committed the same offence again.

[quote=“myboyblue”]I realise the opportunity is there to carry this out in rugby more so than any other game, but its outrageous how common it has become. I presume it was always common, but is just coming more to the public eye (for want of a better word) due to the proliferation of tv camera’s, but its something that needs to be stamped down on mercilessly at this point. The lack of uniformity in the punishment is one of the major flaws in the game. The IRB is a bit of a joke when it comes to discipline.

I’ve always found this to be one of the worst pictures on it I’ve seen, I know there’s others out there

http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o162/jacklupo/RugbyGougeEye.jpgChrist that guy in the spoiler looks just like Chunk from The Goonies!:eek:

Video of the eye gouging

YouTube- Julien Dupuy alledgedly eye gouging Stephen Ferris[/quote]

The 6 month ban for Dupuy looks like a good punishment at first viewing but when you think about it they’ve ruled it was at the top end of the scale in terms of intent but only applied 6 months of a max suspension of 3 years. If you decide it’s at the top end then you’ve a duty to impose an equivalent suspension.

Attoub case should be interesting. He’s alleging that the photo above has been doctored so it’s going to a photography expert to determine if the photo is genuine or not. The Guardian (and presumably other sites) are reporting that he’ll get a longer ban if the photo is determined to be real. Not sure what the thinking behind that is? Maybe he gouged him more successfully but you need to punish the intent here as much as anything and the two acts from Dupuy should surely be punished more?

[quote=“Rocko”]The 6 month ban for Dupuy looks like a good punishment at first viewing but when you think about it they’ve ruled it was at the top end of the scale in terms of intent but only applied 6 months of a max suspension of 3 years. If you decide it’s at the top end then you’ve a duty to impose an equivalent suspension.

Attoub case should be interesting. He’s alleging that the photo above has been doctored so it’s going to a photography expert to determine if the photo is genuine or not. The Guardian (and presumably other sites) are reporting that he’ll get a longer ban if the photo is determined to be real. Not sure what the thinking behind that is? Maybe he gouged him more successfully but you need to punish the intent here as much as anything and the two acts from Dupuy should surely be punished more?[/quote]

Yeah I think intent should be punished as much as anything. Fact that Dupuy went after him twice and so blatanly should have seen him banned for at least a year in my opinion.

Was amusing seeing video footage of two players going into the hearing in Dublin smoking and then waving camera away pointing at the cigarette. They might be punished more by their club for smoking than gouging!

Dupuy has his ban reduced by one week.

One week folks, what the fuck are these lads up to? What is the point in, firstly, reducing it at all, I mean what arguemnt could be give for getting it reduced, and secondly, what argument did he give for them to just reduce it by one week?!

Rugby’s disciplinary system is a joke.

Atoub got 16 months!

MBB- Would guess that reducing Dupuy by a week was a tactical move, might not allow them to appeal again or something as they have made a decision on the appeal?

Attoub deserves what he gets. Scumbag. Reading an interesting book at the moment about life of a jounrey man rugby player based in France. Gouging is so common place there its unreal. Have only ever seen/hard it happening once in a game I was involved in. Dont think its all that common in these parts, notwithstanding Shane Jennings recent indiscretion.

That was an attempted eye gouge dan. Don’t forget Quinlan sought out the eye area of a player, found it, and continued to try and rip the eyeball from his opponent’s eyesocket.
Attoub and Quinlan of the same mould-Quinlan should still be serving time now.

[quote=“Pikeman”]That was an attempted eye gouge dan. Don’t forget Quinlan sought out the eye area of a player, found it, and continued to try and rip the eyeball from his opponent’s eyesocket.
Attoub and Quinlan of the same mould-Quinlan should still be serving time now.[/QUOTE]

Your own club captain that ugly mongrel Cullen wrote to the ERC saying he wasnt gouged. Nick Kennedy was complaining to the ref immediately about his eye area being vandalised when Jennings went at him. IM with Leo Cullen on this one I must say :clap::thumbsup:

That speaks more about Leo Cullen though, looking out for the welfare of his fellow countryman, trying to make sure he wasn’t banned for the Lions. A true honourable sportsman that lad.
Wish Quinlan did the same as regards the welfare to his fellow countryman, the eye gouging cunt.
Leo let a few roars out of him too when a few fingers were inserted into his eye, so don’t know what your point is there.

Fuck off Dan
Quinlan did the crime, Leo was misguidedly trying to help him out due to Quinny’s alright sortedness

[quote=“W.B. Yeats”]Fuck off Dan
Quinlan did the crime, Leo was misguidedly trying to help him out due to Quinny’s alright sortedness[/QUOTE]

Sorry if I take the HEC winning captain and all round good egg Leo Cullens word before you two lads on this topic. Some of the new posters to the board may even think you have a vendetta against Munster rugby. In Quinnie we trust.

Hard not to just look at the weirdo at the back in the middle but José stuck a finger in the eye of Tito last night.

http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/3945/es0gq.jpg

:o

I thought from the video he just yanked his ear.
He should get a serious ban for that. The man is out of control.

sky news showed it 4 or 5 times this morning and you could tell from it that he was definately trying to fishhook/gouge him, didn’t think he made any proper contact but the picture looks fairly conclusive. The big sneery head on jose afterwards was gas, like a bold schoolchild

That Borat fella gets around.

:smiley: If that’s not photoshopped it’s the weirdest picture I’ve ever seen.