Louw cleared on eye gouging charge

Cape Town - Bath and Springbok flank Francois Louw has been cleared after he was cited for alleged eye gouging.

Louw was cited for an alleged incident involving Courtney Lawes during Bath's narrow defeat to Northampton last Saturday.

Louw allegedly made "contact with the eye(s) or eye area" of the England lock.

He appeared in front of an RFU disciplinary panel in Bristol on Thursday where he was cleared.

An RFU statement read: "The panel noted that the citing was justified, but with the benefit of being able to view the footage in conjunction with hearing live evidence from both players, the panel were not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Francois Louw had made contact with the eye area of Courtney Lawes."

The 30-year-old Louw joined the English club from the Stormers in 2011. He boasts 43 Tests caps for the Springboks since making his debut in 2010.