France exploring special mask option to fast track Antoine Dupont's return

Les Bleus' captain sustained a facial fracture in the comprehensive 96-0 victory over Namibia in their third Rugby World Cup fixture.

Namibia captain Johan Deysel made a head-on-head tackle with the scrum-half, which resulted in a red card for the skipper and prompted social media abuse.

With the star back now in doubt for the remainder of the tournament, reports in France have revealed that extra measures are being taken to get Dupont back in time for the quarter-finals.

Midi Olympique reports that Dupont will meet a specialist to mould a mask that adheres to World Rugby's regulations.

Unlikely in football, Dupont will not be allowed to don the plastic or carbon fibre protections on his face, any protective gear needing to be made from cloth or strapping - much like the one Imanol Harinordoquy wore during the 2010 Champions Cup semi-final.

It must also not be thicker than 5mm when uncompressed.

World Rugby regulation 12.4 on banned items of clothing states: "Other than the items of clothing set out at 1(a)-(f), 2 and 3 above, a player must not wear any item of which any part is thicker than 5mm when uncompressed or is denser than 60 kilograms per cubic metre unless specified within this Regulation 12/Law 4.

"Where this overall thickness consists of padded material covered by fabric, 5mm is the maximum measured thickness for the combination of the uncompressed padding and the fabric. The fabric can contribute up to a maximum measured thickness of 1mm on each side of the padding."

Former France Rugby doctor Jean-Baptiste Grisoli confirmed as much to Midi Olympique.

"Yes, carbon fibre masks are prohibited, but you can request an exemption for other materials," he said.

The Springboks are likely to face France in the quarter-finals of the tournament unless there is an upset in the latter stages of Pool A or B and it is this fixture that the host nation is no doubt desperately hoping Dupont can return in time for.

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