AS the tide of emotion washed over rugby union this week, few were willing to put their heads above the newspaper parapet amid the manic moralising.

Martin Johnson was hauled out to make a statement of regret over his weekend antics and provide more ammunition for a media circus primed with the custard pies.

The overwhelming point from observers was this was the England captain who had now become a serial offender.

This was a man who should be beyond any natural instincts, a person who simply was not allowed a vicious streak. This was a player who embodied the whole ethos of English rugby.

It reads well and offers plenty of substance. However, when you analyse just why he is the England skipper, you cannot get away from the brutal and sometimes uncomfortable truth.

It is an inescapable fact that it is that very streak which makes Johnson what he is - a winner - a player of immense importance to England.

A man who has been lauded by the very same people who this week damn him for exhibiting the darker side to his character.

Locks invariably have to play on the edge to survive in the sport and nothing is more true than at the very top. It provides a clear dichotomy between Johnson the player and Johnson the image.

It is an age-old argument which suggests players should be examples to the young but anyone regurgitating that theory should be aware that top level sport is rarely seen in playgrounds.

It is played out in a battlezone where players are party to the most extreme provocation. First priority for a player simply has to be part of a winning team and next, survival.

It is not a sportsman's job to bring up the Nation's young. Yes, conduct yourself in the proper manner but when we look on the field of play, we witness a competitive arena where the stakes are high.

Nobody would argue that what Johnson did was right when he re-arranged Robbie Russell's face. However, the endless moralising over a sport which depends on a robust nature reeks of simply filling newspapers rather than reinforcing morale fibre.

Another of the weekend's bad boys - Dan Zaltzman - has vowed to clean up his act after seeing red on Saturday.

Worcester Rugby Club's lock, who received his marching orders at Coventry for punching Mark Tinnock, has been suspended for 21 days by head coach John Brain following the incident.

The apologetic forward, however, will spend the time working on his temperament to avoid any further brushes with rugby's hierarchy.

"John Brain has said I need to be more disciplined and it is something I will work on. I have to just concentrate on the game more and my job within the team. I need to remember what my aims are in the game and try to achieve those. I cannot worry about anything else."

"It was a very unfortunate incident on Saturday for which I've been punished. I was gutted because you feel like you've let your team-mates and the supporters down.

"I am not a malicious player and people have said it was a punch when I was just trying to clear the ruck out. However, I'm very sorry about it and I hold my hands up. It's my responsibility and I'll take the punishment."

"The red card is my first one of my career. I do get targeted quite a lot by the opposition and most of the time you have to take it and try and draw the referee's attention to what's going on."

Zaltzman and Johnson's punches will not be the final ones thrown in the sport. And, you have to suspect, it is those punches which add to the voyeuristic pleasure for supporters and reporters alike.

Not that anyone would own up to it but, deep down, that is simply the uncomfortable truth ingrained within human nature.