Springbok Forward Wessels Given Nine-Game Ban for Genital Grab

Springbok prop Wessels has received a ban of nine games for grabbing opponent Josh Murphy's genitals during the Blue Bulls' URC win over the Irish province.

The incident took place in the 18th minute of the narrow victory against Connacht on Friday, with Connacht forward Josh Murphy being shown a temporary dismissal after reacting angrily by striking Wessels on the head area.

After Murphy complained to the match official, the contact was reviewed by the TMO, who determined no definitive proof.

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

While the URC confirmed that the Irish player's 20-minute red card was rescinded by a disciplinary panel, the Springbok was deemed to have breached law 9.27, which states:

"Any athlete should not engage in actions that is against the spirit of good sportsmanship. This includes touching, pulling or squeezing the genitals."

The panel were satisfied that the event reached the red card threshold and warranted a 12-week suspension, the minimum suspension under international rugby regulations for such an offence.

Nonetheless, the player's suspension was reduced by 21 days because of his cooperative behavior during the proceedings and his clean disciplinary history.

The forward and the Pretoria-based team have the right to appeal, but as it stands, the ban will rule the young player out of the South African national team's fall internationals against the Brave Blossoms, Les Bleus, the Azzurri and the Irish team.

Wessels will also miss the his club's URC games against Glasgow, the Emirates Lions and the Cell C Sharks, as well as European cup games with Bègles and Northampton.

Wessels has won ten international appearances for the Springboks and was part of their tri-nations champion squad during the recent tournament.

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