IRB, SA Rugby on a collision course…again

It’s uncanny how South Africans can be so narcissistic, arrogant, stubborn and petulant to the extent that they become blind. It’s time for a little introspection and a massive overhaul of the way we conduct ourselves.

Time and again we fail our people by being discourteous and rude with the most phenomenal gaffes on the international stage.

In the short space of a week, South Africa has felt and will continue to feel the enormous political, financial and psychological ramifications of the short-sightedness of Athletics South Africa with Caster Semenya, and today with the International Rugby Board (IRB) ruling sanctioning SA Rugby for bringing the game into disrepute.

First, the Athletics South Africa (ASA) case. The Semenya spotlight should fall on ASA president Leonard Chuene for failing to adequately prepare for the IAAF World Championships in Berlin. All scrutiny, tests, verifications, blood and chromosome profiles should have been prepared in a dossier for each and every South African athlete.

If I were keeping a scorecard I would also be concerned that our other gold medallist, Mbulaeni Mulaudzi, was running in a vest without any South African branding in a world championship final. Very tardy and highly questionable of the competencies of the administrators overseeing the athletes’ presentation.

Second, I am gobsmacked at the lack of tact and political savvy of SA Rugby in their handling, or rather mishandling, of this very awkward and amateurish Springbok/Bakkies Botha armband protest (with masking tape and marker pen) that will cost the country possibly billions of rands.

Some South Africans have made light of this and offer up obtuse arguments of false bravado and defiance of the IRB with all sorts of wild rationale starting with “cleaning out the ruck” and “that Matt Giteau tackle”. All of which has absolutely nothing to do with the very tenets of the respective Rugby Union constitution and what the IRB and SA Rugby constitutions call for in terms of appropriate sporting behaviour and good conduct.

The IRB has threatened to impose stiffer penalties against the South African Rugby Union (Saru) and its players, including a possible World Cup ban, after they were found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute.

The charges and penalties, confirmed on Monday, follow Saru and the Bok team appearing before an IRB disciplinary committee two weeks ago. This followed the Bok’s decision to wear armbands with “Justice 4” written on them.

The armbands were worn as a symbol of solidarity with lock Botha. South Africans felt he had been unfairly banned for clearing out a ruck during the second Test of the British and Irish Lions series.

The independent committee imposed fines of £10 000 (R127 000) for Saru, £1 000 (R12 700) for Springbok skipper John Smit and £200 (R2 500) for each of the other players.

The IRB, in a statement, made it clear that it was not happy.

This could have all ended weeks ago with an unreserved apology to IRB chairperson Bernard Lapasset (similar to the one Saru president Oregan Hoskins had to make before the sports portfolio committee, a year ago) But no …

On closer inspection, it will be absolutely clear that SA Rugby fatally damaged their Rugby World Cup bid for 2015 and 2019 with this brazen defiance.

The IRB has closed ranks among its member nations and assumed a hard line towards SA Rugby and it is going to take some serious lobbying and humble apologies, like eating crow, to correct this damage.

“Whilst welcoming the guilty verdicts, the IRB is extremely disappointed at the level of sanctions imposed against the South African Rugby Union and its players in light of the clear findings that they have brought the Game of Rugby into disrepute and acted in a manner which is prejudicial to the best interests of the IRB and the Game of Rugby,” the statement said. The IRB statement went on to say that further penalties could include a possible World Cup ban.

If that is not an indication of how upset the IRB is and how they can affect the financial future and standing of South African rugby for the next 15 years, I don’t know what is.

“The Independent Committee was unanimous in its view that, had it not been for the legal technicalities both Saru and the Springbok players and management would have faced much more serious sanctions, including a more severe fine in the case of Saru and the suspension of the Springbok players and management from the Rugby World Cup 2011.”

Saru was found to have failed to make any attempt to prevent the protest, approved of it and effectively consented to conduct which was prejudicial to the best interests of the IRB and of the game.

Hoskins, in response, said his organisation would first study the full judgment before issuing a reaction.

“We note the outcome of the International Rugby Board’s Disciplinary Committee hearing into the charges brought against the South African Rugby Union, Springbok players and management,” Hoskins said. “We are reviewing the full findings of the committee and will respond once that review is concluded.”

The committee noted the absence of any apology from Saru, the team’s management or the players themselves and emphasised that “the playing arena is no place for protest” and that the wearing of the armbands “showed a serious lack of respect and consideration for their opponents”.

For crying out loud SA Rugby, get your letter of unreserved apology off to the IRB today and get John Smit and all the offenders, now in Perth, to similarly sign an apology, publish it as an open apology and let’s get on with the business of rugby, otherwise you are killing our game!

Here’s the IRB statement in full.