Ethan Hooker injury forces Sharks to make ‘official request’ to URC after Welsh winger’s dogshot goes unpunished
Sharks star Ethan Hooker and an inset of head coach JP Pietersen.
The Sharks have officially requested that the incident that led to Ethan Hooker’s injury be investigated by the United Rugby Championship citing commissioner, according to a report.
Hooker was unable to return for the second half of the 21-17 defeat to Ospreys after he dislocated his shoulder as a result of winger Luke Morgan diving on his back after he had scored a try.
The 23-year-old is now set to miss the remainder of the Sharks‘ URC campaign and has emerged as a doubt for the Springboks‘ July internationals too, depending on the severity of the injury.
Sharks make official request to the URC
The match officials reviewed the try, ensuring there was no knock-on in the build, but failed to identify Morgan’s actions with the incident going unpunished, a fact that frustrated Sharks boss JP Pietersen.
“Ethan’s injury was a massive blow for us,” Pietersen said. “After scoring a try, the rules say you are not supposed to dive on a player and rules are there to protect players and sadly that did not happen.
“He dislocated his shoulder. He is a massive presence for us and to lose him after the first half was very disappointing and frustrating.”
Morgan has since taken to social media to defend his actions, lashing out at fans who criticised him and insisting that his actions were legal.
Meanwhile, the Sharks are clearly unhappy with the situation and, according to a report by IOL Sport, have requested that the URC citing commissioner investigate the incident.
A source at the Sharks confirmed to the publication that management in Wales “submitted a report and supporting medical documents to the commissioner on the night of the match”.
The Durban club are reportedly “demanding a full investigation into the cheap shot” from the Welsh winger that ended Hooker’s game and hampered their chances of a victory.
That incident has emerged as one of the main talking points from the weekend’s action but the Sharks were harshly done by with starting centre Le Roux Malan also forced off the pitch early in the second half after he copped a head-on-head on tackle and failed his subsequent HIA – an action that also wasn’t punished.
Ospreys accused of cheating
Meanwhile, the Ospreys have also faced ‘cheating’ accusations after referee Mike Adamson was forced to order uncontested scrums at a time when the Sharks clearly had an upper hand at the set-pieces after injuries to both of the hosts’ loosehead props.
Pietersen questioned whether the injuries were honest or whether it was a ploy to deny the scrum contest when speaking to reporters after the game, while former sevens star Jonathan Mokuena was far more forthright in his review on SuperSport’s post-match coverage.
“If I was JP Pietersen and the management, I would definitely be having a look at that. For one, I would want to see an injury report on the players that actually went off the field,” he said.
“If they decided to fake an injury, that’s against the laws of the game.
“At the time I found that the Sharks were slowly but surely starting to find their mojo. Ox Nche and Vincent Koch were really doing well applying pressure on their own ball and the opposition ball, so it’s something the Sharks need to look in to.”
The report by IOL made no mention of an investigation into the decision to order uncontested scrums but it did reveal that Hooker has returned to Durban and is undergoing scans to determine the severity of the damage and his expected recovery period.
