Cape Town — SA Rugby and Rassie Erasmus have withdrawn their appeal against World Rugby’s verdict on the SA director of rugby.
In a statement released on Thursday, SA Rugby officially withdrew their appeal, while also apologising to the match officials that were involved in the Springboks’ first Test against the British & Irish Lions in July.
In doing so, Erasmus has accepted a two month ban from all rugby and a matchday suspension until 30 September 2022, which he started serving during the Springboks’ match against England at Twickenham.
Erasmus was found guilty on all six charges brought against him after he compiled a 62-minute video in which he criticised some of the calls made by Australian referee Nic Berry.
SA Rugby was fined £20 000 (around R418 000) and received a warning regarding future conduct.
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The statement read: “We also confirm that SA Rugby and Erasmus have advised World Rugby that they withdraw their Notice of Appeal and will not lodge an appeal against the sanctions imposed by the Judicial Committee.
“This has been a highly stressful and charged environment with unusual pressures placed on all concerned and we have no wish to prolong that experience for anyone.
“We have drawn a line under the incident and only wish to look forward. We will respect the outcomes of the hearing, allowing our national teams and rugby operations to plan with clarity for the coming months.”
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