The Disciplinary process related to Ruben Schoeman's Red Card in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Round 8 game against DHL Stormers on Saturday, December 21 has resulted in a five game suspension.
After an act of foul play by DHL Stormers player No 4 (Ruben Schoeman), referee Chris Allison showed the Player a Red Card in the 20th minute of the game under Law 9.20a – Dangerous play in a ruck or maul. A player must not charge into a ruck or maul. Charging includes any contact made without binding onto another player in the ruck or maul.
In the Player’s responses to the Judicial Officer overseeing the disciplinary process (Rose Alice Murphy, Ireland), he had accepted that he had committed an act of foul play which warranted a Red Card. Mrs. Murphy found that the incident met the Red Card threshold, with entry of mid-range warranting six weeks. The Player received 3 weeks (50%) mitigation for his apology, admission of foul play and conducting himself well in the abbreviated process. However, the Player has received two other Red Cards for foul play in the last 13 months which have resulted in suspensions, one of which was reduced by one week because the Player benefited from the World Rugby Coaching Intervention Programme. The Player's previous record was therefore considered as an aggravating factor warranting a further two weeks of sanction. This results in a five game suspension.
Fixtures Ruben Schoeman is unavailable for:
Montpellier v Emirates Lions, 11 January 2025, EPCR Challenge Cup
Emirates Lions v Dragons RFC, 18 January 2025, EPCR Challenge Cup
Emirates Lions v Vodacom Bulls, 25 January 2025, Vodacom URC
Emirates Lions v DHL Stormers, 15 February 2025, Vodacom URC
Vodacom Bulls v Emirates Lions, 22 February 2025, Vodacom URC