Hurricanes captain Ardie Savea has apologised for making a throat-slitting gesture towards an opponent in Friday’s Super Rugby Pacific clash against the Rebels in Melbourne.

Savea made the gesture towards Rebels scrum-half Ryan Louwrens and appeared to threaten him after he was yellow-carded in the closing stages of the opening half.

This, after a heated exchange erupted during the Hurricanes‘ 39-33 victory in their Super Rugby Pacific fixture at AAMI Park.

Took the law into his own hands

Initially, a scuffle broke out on the ground between Hurricanes hooker Dane Coles and Rebels lock Josh Canham, and it did not take long for players from both sides to join the fray. Savea took the law into his own hands when he removed Rebels fly-half Carter Gordon from the fracas before throwing him to the ground.

Referee James Doleman felt the All Black’s reaction was excessive and sent him to the sin bin for “escalating” the situation.

However, Savea remonstrated and then got involved in an argument with Louwrens before making the throat-slitting gesture towards the Rebels’ number nine and appeared to threaten him as he left the pitch.

There were several boos aimed at Savea when he returned to the field in the second half, and he apologised shortly after the game.

“I can understand the fans are furious around the gesture that I made,” he told Sky Sport.

“It’s just a heat of the moment kinda thing. It’s footy. Kids are watching us, we’re in the heat of the moment. Usually, that’s out of character for me, so I put my hand up first, and I apologise for that.

“I’m just glad to get the win. The Rebels brought it tonight. Credit to them. They were physical with their forward pack, so something for us to look in the mirror [at].”

Savea’s annoyance seemed to stem from his yellow card, which he believed was soft.

“It’s just normal banter in the game. For me, to get a yellow card for a push and shove, that’s just where rugby’s going,” he added.

“I’ve got to be better. We’re trying to clean up the game. I understand… there’s no excuse for me, I’ve got to be better.”

Outstanding performance

Despite his behaviour, Savea’s performance was outstanding as he scored two first-half tries and also set up a five-pointer for Josh Moorby during that period.

His sin-binning and a red card to Tevita Mafileo – early in the second half – allowed the Rebels to launch a fightback after the Hurricanes held a 24-7 lead at half-time. The visitors did well to hold on for their win, which is their second one on the road after they also beat the Reds in Townsville last weekend.

READ MORE: WATCH: Ardie Savea makes slit throat gesture in heated Hurricanes win over Rebels

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