Vodacom Bulls hooker Schalk Brits could face a fine of up to R100 000 for questioning Sanzaar’s judicial system.
Brits was handed a four-match suspension after a failed appeal following his red card against the Sharks earlier this season. He was involved in a scuffle with opposite number Akker van der Merwe that included a few punches.
Sanzaar has now written a letter to the Bulls to inform the franchise that they’ve looked into Brits’ comments and a decision was made to charge the hooker for bringing Vodacom Super Rugby and the governing body into disrepute with his remarks.
It was seen as a breach of the competition’s code of conduct, damaging the tournament’s high-standing disciplinary processes and violating the rule that players and coaches can not criticise the decisions of match-day and/or disciplinary officials.
In the build-up to his first game back since suspension, Brits implied that Sanzaar needs to reassess their judicial system, saying ‘Sometimes you feel that‚ “How can a guy in Australia get two weeks and a guy in South Africa get four weeks?”
‘As a rugby player I feel that we get the short end of the stick a lot of times in South Africa. I really think they need to reassess the process.
‘You are penalising me for a record that I got four years ago. Do I think that is fair? Maybe not‚ but it happened and I can’t do anything about it now. But I did ask them to have a proper look at it.’
Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
