Bath and England prop David Flatman offers his take on the latest eye-gouging row in his latest View from the Front Row piece in The Independent.
"Every player has been gouged at some stage. François Pienaar once told me: "If you never get gouged or goosed [I assumed this meant the testicle grab] then you're not in the way enough." Possibly not a view my grandmother would share, but certainly one that, a few years ago at least, proved pretty accurate.
And while it is well wide of the mark to proclaim that all players have, at some point, gouged a man themselves, it is probably fair to assume that we have all "made contact with the eye area" from time to time. You see, in my opinion, there is a huge difference between these two descriptions of what is supposed to be the same act. To me, gouging is the conscious effort to put your fingers into another player's eye in order to intimidate, punish or injure him. However, there are times, especially in this era of accuracy and small margins at the breakdown, when you fly in with intent but manage to miss the defender threatening to steal the ball.
It is at this point you find yourself grabbing and grappling at any part of him you can to get him off the thing. Heads are tugged at, along with hands, legs, shorts, scrum caps, anything. No malicious intent, just a desire to keep the game going."
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