John Hayes has been handed a six-week ban following his red card for stamping on Cian Healy last weekend. The Munster prop received the sanction after attending an IRFU disciplinary hearing at Ravenhill this evening.

The ban will rule Hayes out until November 14th and will see him miss two Heineken Cup matches (against Northampton and Treviso) and two Magners League games (v Edinburgh and Ulster).

However, the ban expires the day before the autumn series of internationals gets underway and Ireland’s most-capped prop will be free to add to his tally against Australia, Fiji and South Africa.

Am IRFU panel of Hugh Logan, Stephen Hilditch and Neil Jackson convened in Belfast this evening where Hayes was handed his sanction.

“Having studied the match footage and heard all available evidence, the disciplinary panel confirmed that the offence constituted a high end entry level in terms of sanctions,” the IRFU said.

“Having also considered all mitigating factors, the panel imposed a six week suspension from the date of the offence.”

The player has the right to appeal this decision