Pierre Schoeman will sit out both of Edinburgh's opening two Heineken Champions Cup fixtures after he was handed a four-week ban for elbowing Leinster's Dan Leavy.
The former Bulls prop was cited after planting his elbow into the face of the Ireland flanker during his side's 31-7 Guinness Pro 14 defeat last week.
The incident caused controversy, with figures including former Scotland lock Jim Hamilton believing referee Dan Jones had acted harshly in sending off the 24-year-old for "physical abuse" on the grounds that he had made contact with his opponent's head.
Others - including Edinburgh coach Richard Cockerill - felt it was the right call by the officials and in the end Schoeman's compliance with the disciplinary process spared him an even lengthier suspension.
A Pro14 disciplinary hearing convened in Neath concluded that there was "an act of foul play of striking the head with the forearm" and initially recommended a six-week ban.
However, the panel comprising Welsh disciplinary chiefs Simon Thomas, Roger Morris and Nigel Williams decided to slash his punishment to four weeks after considering the mitigating circumstances, which included Schoeman's "acceptance of the red card and behaviour throughout the hearing".
He will be barred from competing until midnight on Sunday, 21 October, meaning he misses both of Edinburgh's home Pro 14 fixtures against Benetton and Cheetahs, as well as their Champions Cup group stage clashes with Montpellier and RC Toulon.
