Luke Fitzgerald maintained South Africa flanker Schalk Burger should have been sent off for eye-gouging him less than 30 seconds into the second Test.

Burger was sin-binned for the incident and has tonight been cited — but the Lions believe South Africa should have been reduced to 14 men permanently.

The Lions took a 10-0 lead while Burger was off the field but the Springboks managed to fight back to snatch the Test series with a 28-25 victory.

Fitzgerald felt a finger enter his right eye and required treatment from the medics before continuing.

He said: “It’s quite a strange decision. If the referee decided that’s what he was going to card him for then it should have been a red. I guess part of it was because it was at the start of the game and he didn’t want to spoil it as a spectacle.

“But you’d want to feel that the referee would deal with something like that quite severely. I was surprised that someone of Burger’s quality would have done something like that.”

Assistant official Bryce Lawrence brought the incident to the attention of referee Christophe Berdos and was heard to recommend a minimum of a yellow card.

South Africa head coach Peter De Villiers insisted Burger, who was playing his 50th Test for the Springboks, did not even deserve a yellow card.

“I don’t think it should have been a card at all,” he said. “For me and for everybody, this is sport. This is what it is all about. This is great if everything is clear cut in this environment we are in we shouldn’t try to prepare even.

“What people think and what people say to us is their opinion and we honour their opinion but it doesn’t mean we all agree with it.”

Lions head coach Ian McGeechan preferred not to comment.

The Burger incident was the second incident of alleged gouging in Test rugby today after Italy captain Sergio Parisse was cited for contact with eye area of All Blacks flanker Isaac Ross.

“It seems to be coming into the game,” said Fitzgerald.

The Lions had to replace Munster flanker Alan Quinlan from their original squad

after he received a 12-week ban for making contact with the eye area of Leinster captain Leo Cullen in the Heineken Cup final.