Clermont Auvergne and Georgia star Viktor Kolelishvili has been suspended for 14 weeks after pushing English referee Wayne Barnes during their European Champions Cup tie against Ospreys.
As reported by the BBC, the incident occurred during his side’s 21-13 loss at the Liberty Stadium on Friday night and although the flanker was lucky not to be issued with a card at the time, he was later awarded a yellow card following an altercation with Ospreys captain Alun Wyn Jones.
Kolelishvili has since been cited for the incident and pleaded guilty to the forceful act that in turn earned him with a 14-week suspension. The Georgian international’s poor discipline record was also taken into consideration and a further two weeks were added, although his immediate apology to Englishman Barnes saw the final ban halved.
Clermont’s second defeat in this year’s Champions Cup has seen the French side fall to second in the table behind Ospreys and with one game remaining against Bordeaux-Begles at home on January 24 the Vulcans know that they have a tough task at hand.
