Roger Pickering, the tournament's director, yesterday called for penalties to be imposed following brawls during and after Sunday's European Cup rugby union match between Brive and Pontypridd.

In a statement Pickering said he would recommend to the European Rugby Cup Board that it impose sanctions at a meeting on Monday. But he did not specify what these sanctions could be and whether both teams would be targeted.

Pickering also said he was writing to every team in the competition reminding them that "foul play is totally unacceptable".

He called on referees to get tough with on-field violence which tarnished the game and harmed the tournament's credibility.

"I have asked the unions to remind their match officials to assert their authority in the strongest possible way and to deal very firmly with any incidents of foul play on the field," Pickering said.

Brive and Pontypridd gave their version of Sunday's events at a special hearing in Dublin on Wednesday.