World Rugby's citing and suspension processes have once again been held up for ridicule following the five-week ban handed down to Manu Samoa wing Alesana Tuilagi for, in effect, running into an opponent with the ball.
The incident itself is so innocuous that a citing alone is highly surprising to anyone who has taken even a passing interest in the sport; the fact that he has been banned for five weeks beggars belief, and has raised concerns across a wide spectrum of the rugby community.
The suspension of Tuilagi for his team's final pool match against Scotland and the start of his club season with Leicester is able to be appealed and the hope is that someone from World Rugby sees sense and quashes the whole thing, allowing the 34-year-old to play what will almost certainly be his final World Cup match.
Tuilagi was cited by independent commission Yves Thieffine, a Frenchman, for striking Japan player Harumichi Tatekawa with his knee during Samoa's disappointing 26-3 defeat in Milton Keynes.
The reality is Tuilagi carried the ball into Tatekawa, and the second-five fell backwards. He needed treatment for a shoulder injury soon afterwards but carried on; the incident typical of that played out on countless rugby fields around the world every weekend.
