South African Player Jan-Hendrik Wessels Receives Nine-Match Ban for Genital Grab
Wessels will be unavailable for South Africa's autumn internationals.
Springbok prop Wessels has received a ban of nine matches for making contact with Josh Murphy's private parts during the Blue Bulls' URC win over Connacht.
The altercation happened in the early stages of the close contest against Connacht on Friday, with Connacht forward Murphy receiving a temporary dismissal after responding aggressively by striking Wessels on the head.
After the Connacht player reported the incident to referee Mike Adamson, the contact was reviewed by the TMO, who concluded insufficient clear footage.
Wessels stayed on the field until he was replaced in the later stages of the game.
Although the United Rugby Championship announced that the Irish player's 20-minute red card was rescinded by a governing body, the Springbok was found to have breached law 9.27, which declares:
"A player must not do anything that is against the principles of fair play. This includes touching, twisting or compressing the private areas."
The panel were satisfied that the event reached the level for dismissal and justified a three-month ban, the shortest ban under international rugby regulations for such an offence.
Nonetheless, the player's suspension was shortened by three weeks because of his cooperative behavior prior to and at the hearing and his good record.
The forward and the Pretoria-based team are entitled to challenge the decision, but as it stands, the ban will rule the 24-year-old out of the South African national team's autumn Tests against the Brave Blossoms, France, Italy and the Irish team.
Wessels will also miss the his club's league matches against Warriors, the Emirates Lions and the Cell C Sharks, as well as European cup games with Bordeaux and Northampton.
The prop has won ten international appearances for South Africa and was included in their Rugby Championship-winning squad during the recent tournament.
Murphy, in contrast, is available to face the Irish rivals in Saturday's domestic clash after being exonerated.
