ENGLAND’S JOE MARLER has been handed a 10-week ban for grabbing Alun Wyn Jones’s genitals.

Marler’s case was heard in Dublin today where an independent disciplinary committee suspended him until 8 June.

The England prop accepted that he had committed an act of foul play but did not accept that he had “grabbed, twisted or squeezed [Wyn Jones's] genitals” nor that his actions warranted a red card.

“The Disciplinary Committee found that the act of foul play warranted a low-end entry point (twelve weeks’ suspension) and reduced that by three weeks to take account of mitigating factors (including good character and remorse) but increased it by one week to take account of his most recent disciplinary record,” the Six Nations said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Marler’s England team-mate Manu Tuilagi was handed a four-week ban for leading with a shoulder to the head in his tackle on George North.

Tuilagi’s tackle was deemed to warrant a mid-range entry point which carries a minimum six-week suspension, but was reduced to four weeks on account of his good conduct and remorse.

Tuilagi will be free to resume playing on 14 April.

The citing against Courtney Lawes for his first-half tackle on Alun Wyn Jones was dismissed.