South African Forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels Given Nine-Match Suspension for Genital Grab

Springbok prop Wessels faces a suspension of nine games for grabbing Josh Murphy's private parts during the Blue Bulls' URC victory over the Irish province.

The altercation occurred in the 18th minute of the narrow victory against Connacht on last Friday, with opposing player Josh Murphy being shown a 20-minute red card after reacting angrily by hitting the South African on the head area.

Following the Connacht player reported the incident to referee Mike Adamson, the contact was reviewed by the television match official, who found no definitive proof.

The Bulls player stayed on the field until he was substituted in the later stages of the game.

Although the United Rugby Championship announced that Murphy's 20-minute red card was overturned by a disciplinary panel, Wessels was found to have breached the code of conduct, which specifies:

"Any athlete must not engage in actions that is against the spirit of good sportsmanship. This includes grabbing, pulling or compressing the private areas."

The panel were satisfied that the contact met the red card threshold and warranted a 12-week suspension, the shortest ban under World Rugby regulations for such an offence.

However, the player's ban was shortened by three weeks because of his good conduct during the hearing and his good record.

Wessels and the Pretoria-based team have the right to appeal, but currently, the ban will rule the young player out of the Springboks' fall internationals against Japan, France, the Azzurri and the Irish team.

He will also miss the Bulls' league matches against Glasgow, the Lions and the Cell C Sharks, as well as Investec Champions Cup games with Bordeaux and Saints.

The prop has earned ten international appearances for South Africa and was part of their Rugby Championship-winning team during the recent tournament.

Murphy, in contrast, is eligible to face the Irish rivals in Saturday's inter-provincial derby after being cleared.