Player's finger bitten off during game

May 21, 2002

A young player in South Africa intends to press charges against an opponent who bit off half his index finger in a recent encounter.

Virgil Wepener, 21, of Temperance RFC, was playing against Peninsula RFC when the incident occured.

"I tried to prevent my opponent from scoring a try, so I put my hand under the ball," Wepner recalled to the Cape Times.

"While the referee was deciding whether this guy had scored a try or not, he bit my finger. I did not feel the pain immediately."

Wepener said the try was not awarded, but he still had not realised that "half my finger was lying on the rugby field".

"My friend came over and picked up the piece of flesh and put it in my pocket. Only then did I realise that it was actually burning," he said.

Wepener, who works for an insurance company, said he often used a computer to do his job.

"It's quite ironic that it's my finger, which I use to do my work, that is injured. Now I can't do my work," said a distraught Wepener.

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