Chris Ashton was last night banned until next year for pulling the hair of a fellow rugby player.

Mirror

The England star was handed a four-week ‘dreadlock holiday’ for what a Rugby Football Union disciplinary panel considered an act of “denigration” during Northampton’s defeat at Leicester on Saturday.

Ashton sparked a brawl which led to two red cards by pulling Samoan wing Alesana Tuilagi into touch by his plaited hair during a fiery east midlands derby.

Tuilagi was sent off for retaliation along with Northampton’s England flanker Tom Wood.

The Saints wing, joint top try scorer in the recent World Cup, escaped any sanction from referee Wayne Barnes and his touch judges, who missed his part in the incident.

But justice caught up with him on Monday when he was charged with an act ‘contrary to good sportsmanship’ and at a hearing in London yesterday the 24-year-old was banned until January 4.

At the same hearing Wood and Tuilagi were told their red cards were sufficient punishment – but citing officer Mike Rafter took action against three other players involved in the fracas.

Leicester wing Horatio Agulla, his team captain Geordan Murphy and Courtney Lawes, Northampton’s England lock, were issued with level 1 citings – equivalent of yellow cards.

Of the Ashton offence Judge Jeff Blackett, the RFU Disciplinary Officer, said: “We accepted that this started by accident but it became clear that at some stage Chris Ashton knew what he was doing.

“If you pull somebody by the hair there is an element of denigration and this act was a catalyst for a mass brawl that resulted in two red cards and significantly affected the image of the game.

“Without any laid down guidance on sanction we have aligned the offence to that of spitting.

“This was a mid-range offence but we have reduced the sanction by two weeks based on the player’s good record and conduct at the hearing.”

Ashton, who was also ordered to pay s500 in costs and who already has a s5,000 suspended fine for misconduct at the World Cup hanging over him, has 48 hours to appeal.

A damaging night for Northampton, who must win back-to-back Heineken Cup matches against Castres on the next two weekends to stand any chance of qualifying for the last eight, also brought a two-week ban for captain Phil Dowson.

The flanker was found guilty of a dangerous tackle on Alex Goode during Saints’ win over Saracens 11 days ago.