The Springboks and SA will be united against two enemies on Saturday, in England and an unfair World Rugby governing body.
Referee Nic Berry was at the centre of the Rassie Erasmus video, which has got him banned. Picture: EJ Langner/Gallo Images
The hearings were conducted on October 30-31, although the findings were only released this week. They largely concern a raft of complaints raised by Erasmus about the performance of referee Nic Berry during the first Test of the rugby series between the Springboks and the British & Irish Lions in July this year.The concerns were contained in a classic 62-minute video released – or leaked, depending who you believe – soon after the Test.
From a deeply biased South African perspective, the decision stinks to high heaven, particularly one gem of a finding: that SA Rugby is guilty of not preventing Siya Kolisi from saying, in answer to a question from the media, that, yes, he felt disrespected by referee Berry. The deeper issue is not the performance of the referee, but the fact that the sport of rugby is facing a laws crisis. Compared to football, which thrives on its elegant simplicity, rugby is a riven with a plethora of laws governing every aspect of play, often contradictory, and all open to interpretation.
However, the sport’s rulers cannot allow anyone, least of all peripheral South Africa, to point out that the emperor wears no clothes, and the sport is becoming impossible.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Rassie Erasmus and SA Rugby to appeal against World Rugby verdictSA Rugby and its director of rugby Rassie Erasmus have confirmed that they will appeal against the decisions handed out by World Rugby’s judicial committee against them on Wednesday.
Read more »
Thank you World Rugby; all you've done is fire up the BoksAnd it's about time the game's leaders were more open about refereeing performances.
Read more »
Ifani says Cassper, S'Nova & Phori 'won't be welcomed' in SA hip hop when it's lit againRapper Ifani has singled out artists he feels should not make their way back to hip-hop, should the dynamics of the music industry change.
Read more »
Safa convinced Ghana-SA ref influenced by bettingThe SA Football Association (Safa) is convinced it has gathered enough evidence to prove that Bafana Bafana’s 2022 World Cup qualifier match against Ghana on Sunday was fixed.
Read more »
SA reacts to Fifa saying it will respond urgently to Safa protest letterDo you think they will call for a replay?
Read more »
Citizens complicit in what's going wrong in SAIf a governing party is sure that it will return to power in the next elections, despite its performance, what will motivate it to work hard to deliver the basic services? Nothing.
Read more »