Springboks: Andre Esterhuizen BANNED after Portugal red but Rassie’s savvy decision rewarded

Colin Newboult 24 Jul 2024 8:21 AM

Springboks centre Andre Esterhuizen in 2024 and the tackle which saw him banned.

Andre Esterhuizen has been banned for four matches following his red card for the Springboks against Portugal on Saturday.

The centre received his marching orders after a head-on-head tackle with Jose Lima in the second minute of the clash in Bloemfontein.

Esterhuizen was initially sin-binned and the incident sent to a bunker review before it was deemed to have met the red card threshold and therefore upgraded.

Despite being down a player for most of the match, South Africa claimed a dominant victory over Os Lobos as they secured a 64-21 triumph at the weekend.

The panel’s decision

The incident was determined to be mid-range, which resulted in a six-week suspension, before mitigation was applied and reduced it to four.

Esterhuizen can also get another week chalked off if he attends a World Rugby Coaching Intervention programme.

A World Rugby statement read: “The hearing was undertaken by an Independent Disciplinary Committee chaired by Matthew Weaver KC (England) and joined by former player Jamie Corsi (Wales) and former international referee Valeriu Toma (Romania).

“The player accepted that foul play had occurred and that the offence warranted a red card.

“The Committee considered the appropriate entry point for the offending and decided that the offence warranted the mandatory mid-end entry point for offending involving contact with the head of six matches.

“Having considered the mitigating factors, the Committee decided not to award full 50 per cent mitigation to the sanction resulting in a sanction of four matches.”

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Left out of Boks squad

Esterhuizen was not selected in the Springboks squad for the Australia leg of the Rugby Championship, which could well prove to be a smart decision from head coach Rassie Erasmus.

As a result, the sanction takes into consideration the Sharks’ Currie Cup games with their next four matches against the Lions, Pumas, Griquas and Cheetahs covering the ban.

That means the centre will be available from August 18, after the Boks have played the second of their Wallabies double-header.

Should he complete tackle school, the ex-Harlequins star will be free to play in that Perth Test if required by the South African coaches.