Cape Town - Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber says he is "stunned" by the allegations of drug use in his team.
In the build-up to the Boks' hard-fought 36-20 Rugby Championship win over Argentina in Buenos Aires, a report surfaced of SA Rugby allegedly seeking a legal interdict to stop Sunday newspaper Rapport from publishing a story that alleges several Boks had tested positive for cocaine.
SA Rugby also released a statement on the "unsubstantiated" claims prior to kick-off on Saturday.
Speaking after their penultimate Rugby Championship game, Nienaber said:
“From my side, it was quite disturbing, especially the timing of it, five hours before a big Test match like this and it’s a semi-final...I’m stunned.
“I’m literally stunned that allegations like that can be made about this team because again we are tested as any other team is tested regularly, sometimes three times a week in South Africa.
“There hasn’t been one positive case since we’ve been together all this year. So it's disappointing.”
🗣️ "To play in front of a crowd like this was unreal, we could feel the energy they were giving the team!"
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) September 17, 2022
Siya Kolisi reacts to the Springboks' bonus-point win against Argentina. pic.twitter.com/Ooxug1biS2
The race for the Championship is still open, and while Bok skipper Siya Kolisi admitted that it had been a tough time for the team, he was pleased with the way his team pitched up on the day despite the allegations of illicit drug use and the ongoing Elton Jantjies saga.
"This game was important for us to win the Rugby Championship.
“We had to pitch up for the game and everything else will be looked after. We pulled together, that’s what we had to do. This game was important for us. You have to show up. We want to win the Championship, and we have to show Argentina the respect that they deserved.
“They’re a very experienced team and a lot of players came back with a great coach. He knows how to get these players up and we told ourselves that as a group, we had to pitch up for the game and everything else will be looked at after.
“It was tough for us as a group, I’m not going to lie about it, but at the end of the day, the people who support us were behind us.
“I don’t know of any player who has been told he has tested positive in this team."
@WynonaLouw