JOHAN GROBBELAAR (RED CARD)

The Disciplinary process related to Johan Grobbelaar's Red Card in the BKT United Rugby Championship Round 5 game against Scarlets on Friday, 18 October has resulted in the red card being rescinded.

The Player (Johan Grobbelaar, No 16) received a Red Card in the 67th minute of the game under Law 9.13 – 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.

The Panel overseeing the disciplinary process Ben Rutherford (Chair, Ireland), Roddy MacLeod (Scotland) and John Carroll (Ireland), found that while an act of foul play had occurred, there was not a high degree of danger and the Player did not enter contact in a dynamic manner or with a high degree of force. The Panel found that the high contact, although it occurred in an instant, was avoidable and that the Player knew or ought to have known the risk of committing foul play when electing to attempt a tackle in his body position with the minimal time to get low and prepare for contact after reacting to a missed tackle by a team mate. Therefore, the Panel found that the tackle did not meet the red card threshold. The card was thus rescinded.

As a result, the Player is now free to play and available for selection this weekend.