Los Pumas fullback in hot water following Boks defeat

Argentinian rugby player Juan Cruz Mallia has found himself in hot water after being cited for alleged foul play during a recent Rugby Championship match. The Springboks secured a nail-biting 22-21 victory over Argentina in front of a roaring crowd of 44,357 fans at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg.

In the opening moments of the match, Cruz Mallia made a forceful charge down of Springbok scrumhalf Grant Williams, blocking a right-footed kick by the halfback, who was set to gather the ball deep in the 22. Unfortunately, Mallia’s follow-through hit Williams in the head with his hip. Despite the stoppage after a South African infringement, referee Andrew Brace ruled that Mallia was committed to the collision after touching the ball and deemed it not foul play.

As a result, Williams was knocked out and stretchered off, allowing Faf de Klerk to replace him on the field.

SANZAAR confirmed that Cruz Mallia allegedly breached Law 9.11, prohibiting players from engaging in reckless or dangerous behaviour that could harm others on the field. The incident came under scrutiny upon reviewing the match footage, and the Citing Commissioner determined that it had met the criteria for a red card, signalling serious foul play.

As a consequence, the matter will be brought before the SANZAAR Foul Play Review Committee for consideration. The video-conference hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, 1st August, with representatives from Argentina, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand participating at 5 am (ARG), 10 am (SA), 6 pm (AUS), and 8 pm (NZ).

Should Juan Cruz Mallia choose to attend the hearing and plead guilty, he will have the opportunity to accept the penalty proposed by the committee to expedite the resolution of the matter.