Sharks captain Mbonambi addresses controversial incident with referee
Sharks captain Bongi Mbonambi has said he meant “absolutely no disrespect” in his treatment of referee Aimee Barrett-Theron in his side’s loss to the Lions in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday, which has since been criticised for.
The South Africa hooker’s conduct has been called into question in the wake of the Sharks’ 40-10 loss to the Lions, chiefly a moment where they had a try ruled out.
Trailing 19-10, the visitors thought they had scored before halftime, only to have the try ruled out for a dangerous clearout at the ruck. Mbonambi was not happy with the decision, and has since been called out for his treatment of Barrett-Theron.
The referee handled the situation brilliantly though, saying to the captain: “Bongi, can you walk with me please, this way? Bongi may I speak please? Listen, I fully respect you and who you are, and I am well aware that all of your players have probably played more games than I have refereed in the URC.
“But we are on the same field so if you could show me the same respect that I show you, that would be very much appreciated.”
The Springbok responded: “They are just looking to me for answers, so was it foul play?”
“Yes, that was foul play,” Barrett-Theron replied.
In a message to Sharks fans shared on X on Monday concerning the result and his side’s poor form, Mbonambi also addressed the incident with the official, saying he apologised at halftime.
“As players we have to take a hard look at ourselves after this result,” the double World Cup winner said.
“We cannot blame anyone else and have a lot of hard work ahead of us. I am an all-in type of player and sometimes my emotions may get the better of me.
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“I have full respect for officials and the role they play within our sport. It was never my intention to come across as rude or difficult. I apologised to the referee at halftime and meant absolutely no disrespect.”
Sharks head coach John Plumtree also shared a message with their fans, with the Durban-based side still rooted to the bottom of the URC table.
“It was a frustrating performance from us and we were just not good enough,” he said.
“As a club, we are better than this and set ourselves high standards, which we are not achieving at this stage.
“We acknowledge the hurt and disappointment amongst our fans as we are hurting just as much as everyone else who loves this brand.
“Thank you to our fans and sponsors for sticking with us during these difficult times. Rest assured there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes to ensure future success.”
Comments on RugbyPass
The game was already over leave the bloke alone ….from a Welsh fan 😀👍
2 Go to commentsShamefully the Toulouse players acted like footballers, falling down feigning injury at the slightest knock. About time refs penalised this play acting.
6 Go to commentsAnother non Scot for the anti Scot Townsend. Soon there will be no Scottish born and bred players in the National team.
1 Go to commentsGreat comeback to the playing field by Richie Mo’unga after the loss of his father. A great performance by Richie . I know him well and he is a great guy. On and off the field one of the greatest for the Crusaders. Scott Robertson would have loved him in his All Black’s side. A very missed player and person.
1 Go to commentsYeah nah he comes across as a funny bloke, but that stopped abruptly after the Nutcracker Prince debacle✋
2 Go to commentsAt this point I can’t watch him without thinking he’s a dirty slimebag. He should have been banned for the same amount of time that Quinn was out. It took Tupaea near on a fricking year to get fit enough to play again and his leg will never be the same. The other crap thing is that he was at ABs level and now he has to claw his way back there when he could have had several games under his belt.
4 Go to commentsThe Black Ferns 7’s have been without Captain Sarah Hirini now since Dec 23 in Dubai where she suffered a bad ACL injury - hopefully she is on the road to recovery for Madrid and Paris. Now also have Tyler King and Shiray kaka on the Injured List but the Team still found a way to win in Singapore and claim the overall Title.
1 Go to commentsUtter grub, hope he gets his leg broken. Shocking he is still playing after intentionally breaking quinn tupaeas knee
4 Go to commentsGreat to see NZ 7s teams finally coming into form and playing at the level that is expected of them.
2 Go to commentsChief Cheapshot on the market again.
4 Go to commentsCrusaders went all in to buy Hotham and Kemara staight from Hamilton Boys. Then they picked up Reihana and Hohepa; all have been dropped for superstar Havili, who is a very good fullback, that’s it. Ennor and Goodhue were schoolboy stars too but went backwards at the Crusaders. Maybe they have finally decided to give another poach Levi Aumua the ball?
13 Go to commentsJoe S has some talent to pick from. The Reds loosies look the best in Super? Aus might just give Razor a headache this year. Int. experience v Cantab greenhorn:) Should be fun.
13 Go to commentsEnd to end play, “THE FANS” this game was entertainment of the best. The conditions added to the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsSorry to say, but sadly the sadas were just ordinary and havilli at 10 as an abs selection just won’t cut it. He’s better suited in the centre’s and is a victim of past charge down kicks, he’s too slow under pressure. There’s better talent further north and I don’t mean dmac however I believe razor will sort him out. A feature of his presents on the park is the fact that the guys will follow him.
13 Go to commentsMarler was brilliant throughout both in the scrum and open play. His slap made virtually no contact with Ramos who milked it for a penalty when he could have been a decent sportsman and laughed it off, it was non-violent and shouldn't have been penalised. Smith failed repeatedly to kick when necessary and put up a couple of bombs into the TLS 22 that just handed back possession at key moments to the other side.
3 Go to commentsCros was outstanding and rightly awarded France TVs player of the match award. Mallia was brilliant as usual (the y is below the 6 on a UK keyboard and he deserves better than that). Level also seems to have been scored harshly as he walked the ball into touch under pressure from a Lynagh kick from well outside his own half which should never have led to a 50-22. Agree with BullShark that Dupont, while class at times, seemed to go missing for patches in the second half with props, hookers and wings frequently filling in at 9 as he couldn't get off the deck and up to the next ruck on time. A 7 by his standards at best, his kicking was also too long, too often. Kinghorn's overall contribution was worth well more than a five.
6 Go to commentsThe Harlequins team must be in minus figures. Did the reporter actually watch the game?
6 Go to commentsHow on earth did Walker escape a red card? Not dangerous? Dupont has his face in a mask earlier this season. Shocking decision. What is the point of TMOs? We had the Fassi ‘non-penalty try’ yesterday and now this.
2 Go to commentsCould have been a different result but yet again French tv able to affect the result by not showing the very clear high shot on harlequin centre if this would have been on a French player would have been on screen at least five times
3 Go to commentsAmazing. The losing team’s ratings are higher than the winning team’s. Mallia definitely didn’t deserve a y. What game were you watching? Should have got a w or an x. ADP hardly featured in that second half. At one point I wondered when he’d been subbed. Seems to me as if he gets an automatic 9 just for getting onto the team sheet.
6 Go to comments