Ardie Savea set social media ablaze when he drew his thumb across his throat at a Rebels player after being yellow carded during an eventful first-half performance for the Hurricanes on Friday.

Savea was sent to the sin bin in the first half of the Super Rugby clash between the Hurricanes and Rebels in Melbourne when things got heated and a fracas broke out between the two teams.

This came after the All Blacks No 8 scored two tries in helping the Hurricanes take a 24-7 lead into half-time.

After being shown a yellow card, Savea had a few words with the opposition and then drew his thumb across his throat at Johannesburg-born Rebels scrumhalf Ryan Louwrens before leaving the field.

Bit of push and shove and Ardie Savea is NOT happy 😡

↳ Rebels v Hurricanes, LIVE NOW. Every Match. Ad-free. Live & On Demand on the Home of Rugby, Stan Sport.#StanSportAU #SuperRugbyPacific #REBvHUR pic.twitter.com/JuPeY5Nlr7

— Stan Sport Rugby (@StanSportRugby) March 3, 2023

The action had many debating whether the yellow card should have been upgraded to a red, or whether Savea should have been shown a second yellow. Under new Super Rugby rules, the TMO can review an incident five minutes after a player is sent to the sin bin and advise the referee to upgrade the punishment.

Following the match, Savea apologised for the gesture.

“I put my hand up and I apologise for that.” An honest reflection from Ardie Savea post-match 🗣️

↳ Rebels v Hurricanes, LIVE NOW. Every Match. Ad-free. Live & On Demand on the Home of Rugby, Stan Sport.#StanSportAU #SuperRugbyPacific #REBvHUR pic.twitter.com/152gThQF6l

— Stan Sport Rugby (@StanSportRugby) March 3, 2023