South African Forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels Given Nine-Game Ban for Genital Grab
Wessels will miss for the Springboks' fall fixtures.
Springbok front-rower Jan-Hendrik Wessels has been suspended of nine games for making contact with Josh Murphy's private parts during the Bulls' URC win over Connacht.
The altercation happened in the early stages of the close contest in Galway on last Friday, with opposing player Josh Murphy being shown a 20-minute red card after reacting angrily by striking Wessels on the head area.
Following Murphy complained to referee Mike Adamson, the event was checked by the TMO, who determined no conclusive video evidence.
The Bulls player stayed on the field until he was substituted in the later stages of the match.
While the URC confirmed that the Irish player's 20-minute red card was withdrawn by a governing body, the Springbok was deemed to have breached law 9.27, which specifies:
"A player should not engage in actions that is against the principles of fair play. Such behavior covers touching, pulling or compressing the genitals."
The panel determined that the contact met the red card threshold and warranted a 12-week suspension, the shortest ban under World Rugby regulations for such an violation.
Nonetheless, the player's suspension was shortened by 21 days because of his good conduct during the proceedings and his clean disciplinary history.
The forward and the Pretoria-based team have the right to challenge the decision, but currently, the ban will rule the 24-year-old out of the South African national team's fall internationals against Japan, Les Bleus, Italy and Ireland.
Wessels will additionally be absent for the his club's league matches against Warriors, the Lions and the Sharks, as well as European cup fixtures with Bègles and Northampton.
Wessels has earned 10 caps for the Springboks and was part of their tri-nations champion team during the recent tournament.
The Connacht player, in contrast, is eligible to face the Irish rivals in Saturday's inter-provincial derby after being cleared.
