Statement: Springbok star loses appeal against ban

The Springboks enforcer was dismissed on November 8 after a no-arms shoulder charge made direct contact with the head of Thomas Ramos, who was already on his knees.

The Boks were forced to battle through the entire second half with 14 men, yet still powered to an impressive 32–17 victory. De Jager denied wrongdoing at his initial disciplinary hearing, but the panel upheld the red card, branding the tackle “reckless.”

Hoping to clear his name, the 31-year-old lock took his case to the appeal committee in a late Wednesday hearing, but they reached the same conclusion.

“The appeal committee dismissed the appeal against the finding that he committed an act of foul play which merited a red card and also against the suspension,” a brief statement confirmed.

The ruling means De Jager will miss the remainder of South Africa’s European tour, having already sat out the win over Italy in Turin. He will also be unavailable for this weekend’s clash with Ireland in Dublin and next week’s finale against Wales in Cardiff.

There had been optimism within the Bok camp after Franco Mostert’s red card against Italy was overturned earlier in the week.

However, the disciplinary committee found a key difference: Mostert’s initial contact was on Paolo Garbisi’s shoulder, with subsequent head contact deemed to involve “much lower force” and not meeting World Rugby’s red-card threshold. As a result, Mostert was cleared to play immediately.

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