South African Forward Wessels Handed Nine-Game Suspension for Genital Grab
The player is ruled out for South Africa's fall fixtures.
South Africa front-rower Jan-Hendrik Wessels has been suspended of nine matches for grabbing opponent Josh Murphy's genitals during the Blue Bulls' United Rugby Championship victory over the Irish province.
The altercation occurred in the 18th minute of the narrow victory in Galway on Friday, with Connacht forward Josh Murphy being shown a 20-minute red card after reacting angrily by hitting Wessels on the head.
After Murphy reported the incident to the match official, the contact was reviewed by the television match official, who found insufficient clear footage.
The Bulls player stayed on the field until he was replaced in the later stages of the match.
While the United Rugby Championship announced that the Irish player's temporary sending-off was withdrawn by a disciplinary panel, Wessels was deemed to have breached the code of conduct, which specifies:
"Any athlete must not do anything that is contrary to the principles of fair play. Such behavior covers grabbing, pulling or compressing the private areas."
Disciplinary officials concluded that the event reached the level for dismissal and warranted a 12-week suspension, the minimum ban under international rugby rules for such an violation.
However, the player's ban was shortened by 21 days because of his cooperative behavior prior to and at the proceedings and his good record.
Wessels and the Bulls are entitled to appeal, but as it stands, the suspension will prevent the 24-year-old out of the Springboks' autumn Tests against the Brave Blossoms, Les Bleus, the Azzurri and the Irish team.
Wessels will additionally be absent for the Bulls' URC games against Warriors, the Lions and the Cell C Sharks, as well as Investec Champions Cup fixtures with Bègles and Northampton.
The prop has won 10 caps for the Springboks and was part of their tri-nations champion team over the summer.
The Connacht player, in contrast, is available to face the Irish rivals in Saturday's inter-provincial derby after being exonerated.
