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SA Rugby address Etzebeth allegations
By Ciarán Kennedy
The South African Rugby Union has issued a response to allegations surrounding second-row Eben Etzebeth.
The Springbok international has been accused of assaulting and racially abusing a homeless man over the weekend.
Videos circulating on social media appeared to show Etzebeth getting involved in an exchange outside a pub in the seaside town on Langebaan, near Cape Town.
SA Rugby have confirmed that they will assist authorities with any potential investigation, but for now, Etzebeth's place in their World Cup squad is not under threat.
"The South African Rugby Union is a law abiding member of South African society and has no tolerance of acts of violence or racial abuse," the statement read.
"We will co-operate with the authorities in any way necessary. Our Rugby World Cup squad will have no place for anyone who transgresses those principles.
"But we also trust our people to act responsibly and tell the truth. We have spoken to Eben and he categorically denies any physical or racial abuse on his part as has been alleged in social media.
"He is a member of the Springbok squad and will remain so unless police authorities require our reconsideration."
Alleged Footage from incident
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Latest Comments
There must be some doubt whether Finau has the head for Test rugby right now, compared to some of the others he doesn't react as well to situations on the field.
Go to commentsMate, I’m no fan of Ireland, but pretty much every international team is constantly off side.
If the refs were to officiate offsides strictly, there’d be 20-some offside penalties per team in every international test.
Instead, offside has become the new forward pass. If it doesn’t fly 30 degrees forward, it’s “flat”. The same with offside: it it’s not a yard and a half offside, it’s on side.
The refs are generally poor at catching even the most egregious offsides (especially Nika Amashukeli, I’ve noticed - he barely officiates offsides), so if the linesmen are asleep, the game can get wild. In those cases, it’s about which team notices this ref weakness first, and abuses it more.
But trust me, EVERY team is trying to get an advantage there if they can get away with it.
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