4 Oct 2011

England centre gets same fine as brother for wrong mouthguard

6:15 pm on 4 October 2011

England's off-field distractions have continued at the rugby World Cup with centre Manu Tuilagi fined $10,000 for wearing a mouthguard showing a sponsor's logo, a week after his brother Samoa winger Alesana was fined for the same offence.

Tuilagi wore the mouthguard in England's win over Georgia in Dunedin.

Fans annoyed at what they considered the harsh penalty for Alesana raised thousands of dollars towards his fine with a sausage sizzle in Auckland.

World Cup organisers have declined to release details of fines issued to other unions for various offences, saying it was up to the individual countries to announce details if they chose.