Springboks prop CJ van der Linde has been suspended for four weeks for an ugly headbutt on Wallabies halfback Sam Cordingley during last Saturday's Tri Nations Test in Durban.

Cordingley was uninjured in the eighth minute incident, which SANZAR disciplinary officer Nick Davidson QC said amounted to dangerous play at a ruck and not deliberately striking with the head.

Van der Linde pleaded guilty to the lesser dangerous play charge.

Davidson ruled van der Linde had illegitimately attempted to clear out a ruck rather than deliberately trying to strike Cordingley.

"Van der Linde has an excellent disciplinary record on which to draw in mitigation," a SANZAR statement read.

"However, the International Rugby Board has recently expressed its concern about the danger of unlawful and dangerous clearing out on the fringes of tackles, rucks and mauls and the need for deterrence is clear and is a counter-weight to any mitigation, Davidson said."

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