Dutch amateur banned for 10 games for alleged bite

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - An amateur player in the Netherlands has been banned for 10 games for biting after pictures of the mark he left were posted on his alleged victim's Facebook site.

Jerry van Staa of amateur club DETO was suspended by the Dutch FA (KNVB) after Thomas Smedema published a photo of the teeth marks left on his back. "During the derby against DETO a player bit me in the back," Smedema posted on his page. "A lowly and cowardly deed.

"His coach and the referee were not brave enough to take him off the field. Such a person has no place on the football field."

Van Staa denied the accusation in a newspaper interview, saying he lost balance after being shoved and fell with his mouth in Smedema's back.

"He then turned around and punched me," he told De Twentsche Courant Tubantia. The KNVB, alerted to the post and following up on last month's incident, suspended Smedema for two matches for the punch.

Van Staa is to appeal against his 10-match ban.

(Reporting by Mark Gleeson, editing by Tony Jimenez)