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Bulls No10 Johan Goosen cops ban after red card in Munster loss
By Josh Raisey
Bulls fly-half Johan Goosen has received a three-match ban following his red card on Saturday against Munster in the United Rugby Championship.
The 13-cap Springbok was sent off by referee Adam Jones after 53 minutes at Loftus Versfeld following a high tackle on Munster scrum-half Craig Casey in a 27-22 win for the visitors.
He was charged this week with contravening Law 9.13 at a hearing – A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. Dangerous tackling includes, but is not limited to, tackling or attempting to tackle an opponent above the line of the shoulders even if the tackle starts below the line of the shoulders.
Following the disciplinary hearing, the URC confirmed that the 31-year-old has been banned for three matches.
The statement read: "In the Player’s responses to the Judicial Officer overseeing the disciplinary process (Sheriff Kathrine Mackie, Scotland), he had accepted that he had committed an act of foul play which warranted a Red Card.
"Sheriff Mackie found that the incident met the Red Card threshold, with entry of mid-range warranting six weeks. The Player received three weeks (50%) mitigation due to his good record and apology to the player which results in a three game suspension."
Goosen will now miss home fixtures against the Ospreys, Glasgow Warriors and Benetton, although he will be able to return a week early should he complete the World Rugby Coaching Intervention Programme.
That means Goosen is likely to miss two of the Bulls' last four matches of the regular URC season.
The Bulls slipped to fourth place in the URC table with the loss to Munster, and now only hold a four-point lead over fifth-place Benetton. While they remain in place to book a home quarter-final, they will be without their fly-half for the visit from second-place Glasgow, who will be vying for the top spot in the league.
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Latest Comments
> It would be best described as an elegant solution to what was potentially going to be a significant problem for new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson. It is a problem the mad population of New Zealand will have to cope with more and more as All Blacks are able to continue their careers in NZ post RWCs. It will not be a problem for coaches, who are always going to start a campaign with the captain for the next WC in mind. > Cane, despite his warrior spirit, his undoubted commitment to every team he played for and unforgettable heroics against Ireland in last year’s World Cup quarter-final, was never unanimously admired or respected within New Zealand while he was in the role. Neither was McCaw, he was considered far too passive a captain and then out of form until his last world cup where everyone opinions changed, just like they would have if Cane had won the WC. > It was never easy to see where Cane, or even if, he would fit into Robertson’s squad given the new coach will want to be building a new-look team with 2027 in mind. > Cane will win his selections on merit and come the end of the year, he’ll sign off, he hopes, with 100 caps and maybe even, at last, universal public appreciation for what was a special career. No, he won’t. Those returning from Japan have already earned the right to retain their jersey, it’s in their contract. Cane would have been playing against England if he was ready, and found it very hard to keep his place. Perform, and they keep it however. Very easy to see where Cane could have fit, very hard to see how he could have accomplished it choosing this year as his sabbatical instead of 2025, and that’s how it played out (though I assume we now know what when NZR said they were allowing him to move his sabbatical forward and return to NZ next year, they had actually agreed to simply select him for the All Blacks from overseas, without any chance he was going to play in NZ again). With a mammoth season of 15 All Black games they might as well get some value out of his years contract, though even with him being of equal character to Richie, I don’t think they should guarantee him his 100 caps. That’s not what the All Blacks should be about. He absolutely has to play winning football.
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