Schalk Burger got dragged into the “Bloodgate” scandal at Harlequins club this weekend. Harlequins Director of Rugby was slapped with a three-year ban for his involvement in the faking of blood.
Richard’s lawyer Mark Gay argued on Sunday that his punishment was “disproportionate.” He cited the eight-week ban given Burger following an eye-gouging citing in June.
“I think it is excessive in the context,” Gay told BBC Radio 5.
“You have to look at what the offense was. What the player was involved with was feigning injury and, to my mind, feigning injury is less serious than causing injury and Schalk Burger got eight weeks for gouging.
“To my mind, it’s a very savage sanction, disproportionate, and really is one which in all conscience, ERC (European Rjg by Club) should not have imposed,” Gay said.
“He has taken full responsibility for what has happened,” Gay said. “I really do think the committee should have taken account of that.
“Of course the cover up really hurts you more than the offense itself, but even in the context of that it’s a savage ban to impose – a ban which could in all intents and purposes have been a life ban on a person like Dean, who has given his life to the game.”
Some of you may not know the exact details of the scandal as we don’t always follow Northern Hemisphere rugby as we do when our local teams are involved. Below is an article on what happened that day.
Fake Blood Used In Harlequins Rugby
Total Pro Sports – It is amazing how far some will go to help lead their team to victory. While some would be willing to take a few punches in order to change the momentum, others have shown that they have no problem with cheating. Look no further than Boston’s beloved franchises.
In England, the notion of cheating was taken to a whole new level.
It was all part of a plan put together by Harlequins’ director of rugby Dean Richards, and club physio Steph Brennan. Richards ordered Brennan to purchase a pack of blood capsules from a Clapham joke shop. The capsules were to be used by players in order to fake injuries during a Heineken Cup match against Leinster.
The player they used as their subject was Quins full-back Tom Williams, a young but promising player who obliged when asked to commit the act.
Willliams admits that when he was handed the fake blood capsule on the pitch by Brennan he put it in his sock and then pulled it out after a contact situation and tried to bite on it. The capsule fell out of his mouth, forcing him to pick it up and and try the whole process again in full view of the sold-out stadium and television cameras. [ThisIsLondon.co.uk]
When officials of Leinster began yelling that the blood was not real, Williams asked the club doctor Wendy Chapman to cut the inside of his lip with a scalpel.
The pantomime nature of the incident continued in the medical rooms under the stand with Williams and Dr Chapman initially having to avoid the gaze of doubting officials and find a room where they could cut his lip. A picture was taken of the cut which was neatly done and did not require any stitches.
In a hearing on the incident, Williams claimed that he was given a lucrative offer of compensation by club chairman Charles Jillings, and chief executive Mark Evans if he agreed to hide the complete details of the situation by making a “limited” appeal. The offer included compensation for a 12-month ban, a new four-year contract, and an offer of employment with the team following his retirement. This move was made in a effort to prevent the team from receiving a Heineken Cup ban and relegation.
Williams had refused such offers and has come forth with the complete details, which were uncovered during the hearing. He was given a 4-month ban for his involvement in Bloodgate, while Richards has received a 3-year ban, Brennan got a 2-year ban, and the club was fined £259,000.
What may have initially seemed like a good idea for the Harlequins rugby club has turned into a costly one. Next time Harlequins are looking for blood, they should consider just asking their players to bite his tongue during the game, rather than later on at the hearing.
Cheating like this is unacceptable and I am sure we all agree. But what punishment is really fair? Was Schalk lucky to get only 8 weeks? Is a three year ban too much? Do other teams also cheat, with Quins just stupid enough to be caught? Is faking a blood injury to get a kicker on the field different than faking an “injury” to a prop to force uncontested scrums?
What are your thoughts?
@isigidi –
Ja, en oor twee games waai Jack, dan sit ons van vooraf innie k@k!! Ek kannie glo dat WP hom nie nog ‘n paar bokse wyn aanbied om te bly tot aan die einde van die kompetisie nie!
Waar is daardie manne wat 3 maande terug geskreeu het dat Werner die toekoms is, en Bok gaan raak, en sterkste skrummer is?
Ek kan onthou ek is nog herinner daaraan dat dit is hoekom hy vir die Emerging Boks gekies is – hehehe.
Maar mense, as mens vir ouens soos Brock begin rate as van die betere skrummers in CC – is John Smit dalk net ons beste vaskop!
@grootblousmile –
Is the fake blood as bad as faking a normal injury i.e. Smit brought back on against the Lions?
@KingPaul – Jip, dit gaat weer sukkel sukkel gaan.
Wat my die moer in maak is die voorrye wat bly vorentoe skrum nadat die fluiting geblaas het en die opponerende voorry vir alle praktiese redes op die grond lê.
Sure, die slotte druk partykeer hulle vorentoe sonder dat hulle sien wat aangaan, maar partykeer is dit onnodig en kaksoekerig.
Wikus het omtrent met elke geleentheid probeer bo-oor Werner hardloop, selfs toe die slotte en flanke reeds opgebreek het.
Maar nou ja, daar is al soveel keer bo-oor Wikus gehardloop, dis seker payback time gewees.
Still don’t like it.
@isigidi –
hehehe
Solank dit die WP ou is wat oor sy opponent loop is dit OK met my. As dit andersom is is dit kaksoekerig! Maar dis nou mos maar voorrye…
63@Morné – Eishhhhhhhhh Morne, put it this way…. I would not have faked an injury to bring John back….
Then again, I’m old enough to have come from an era where we did not have subs, except for genuine injuries… where players were ALL EXPECTED to play the full 80 minutes.
Illegally stealing a little bit of money is as illegal as stealing millions…
What I’m trying to say is, cheating in a little way illegally is cheating nonetheless… and like in anything in life, I do not believe in half measures…. you do something 100% or not at all.
All the time spent in devising devious ways can be spent devising legal ways, not true ?
Focus boetas, focus !
53@Ex Player –
Thanks Ex player. Ja, al die spanne doen dit, maar dit maak dit seker nie reg nie!
@grootblousmile –
Look I agree with you, but had we lost that test it would be interesting to hear the debate then…
For me there is little difference between the John and Quins incidents other than the one was premeditated which I have a major problem with.
55@grootblousmile –
Well said. We are thinking along the same lines. Tes, everybody does it, but it just doesnt feel morally right faking blood, injuries etc.
56@isigidi –
Stem, ander stop die ouens die game om te rus te veel. Goeie punt. Jy kry byvoorbeeld 5 verandering in totaal. As jy jou skopper 5 keer wil opbring om te skop dan is dit jou keuse. Soos in football. Of jy kan jou stutte n paar keer ruil. Wat ookal. Jyt 5 . Finish en klaar.
@Supa Die Bloubul – My pa het altyd gesê jy spot nie met siekte nie.
Voel vir my daar word gespot met siekte as beserings gefake word.
@grootblousmile – Maar is dit dan nie ook cheating om die bal op die grond te speel – as die redenasie van R3 steel, of miljoen steel – hehehe.
Maar ek dink die lyn sal nooit getrek kan word nie – en vir een ou is iets baie erg – en ander sien dit as kleinegeid
@isigidi – Isi – ek het darem al baaaaaaaie ‘n siekie gegooi – veral as dit weer is soos vandag hier in die Kaap!
68@Morne – Ja swaer… pre-meditation is a relative term… sending word to Jannie to fake an injury in a match is also a pre-meditative action in terms of how the Law looks at pre-meditation… the pre-meditation just occurs at a different time…
The term in Afrikaans is “Opsetlik” or “dit is met cpset gedoen”
It is a commission of an action, not a blameless omission !
66@grootblousmile –
Good comment and I agree. The premeditation should not make the difference. So if you plan a crime in advance its wrong, but doing it in the spirit of the moment makes it right?
@Ex Player –
Yup which brings us back to point 1.
Just dont get caught.
And if you do, don’t bitch and moan about it.
@Ex Player – Jy neem Rassie se teoriee te persoonlik op, jy dink en doen al nes hy. 🙂
71@isigidi –
ja ek voel ook so. Maar dis waaroor die argument eintlik gaan. Waar is die lyn? Om n ou in die lug te speel is teen die reels en so ook om n besering the fake. Vir my my voel n bloedbesering fake natuurlik erger as n ou in die lug speel, my common sense se dit vir my. MAar aan wat meet jy dit?
72@Ex Player – Daar is nog die “De Minibus non curat Lex” beginsel ook… die Reg steur hom nie aan beuselagtighede nie…
@KingPaul – @Ex Player – @Supa Die Bloubul – @isigidi – gaan vul in julle ‘kommin’ toetse
@Morné – So cheating is fair as long as you don’t get caught? Sound about right to me.
@Supa Die Bloubul – @grootblousmile –
Let’s bring it to a reference lawyers use.
A premeditated murder is far more serious than a reactionary type of murder (I dont know the terms). But there is a difference in the action (cheating or murder) when it was planned, and when it was as a result of an action and a reaction towards it.
Like ex-player mentioned.
You guys are looking at this as things going against the laws of the game.
I can highlight an average of 35 instances in a match where things are done or committed by players which is clearly against the written laws of the game. Sometimes they get caught and penalised, other times they dont and get away with it.
You are trying to draw a line here, or trying to find a colour between grey and black and white and there is none.
@K9-MonsterLeeu –
Ek het n kommin toets omtrent twee maande terug vir julle gestuur.
@isigidi –
Yup that is basically what I am saying.
Hulle moet stutte weer toelaat om met een hand op die grond te druk. Baie gatvol vir skrums wat gereset word. En hierdie ding van spelers ruil soos hierbo voorgestel is uit. Wat van ‘n speler wat weer fiks genoeg is om vir 80min te speel.?
Perhaps we need to distinguish between cheating on the field (or transgression of laws) by players, and cheating OFF THE FIELD or because of calls and actions of management and others…
Perhaps THAT is the line we need to draw when it is part and parcel of the game (just don’t get caught) or if it is because of actions of people not even part of the game but from the sidelines…
@K9-MonsterLeeu – Hoekom mag ‘n stut nie sy hand op die grond sit nie? OK ek weet dis in die reels, maar wat se voordeel kan jy kry daaruit?
My logika sê dis om seker te maak daar word gebind, maar ek’s nie seker.
@Morné –
And therefore unethical and not part of the ethos of rugby or against the spirit of the game…
I mean if players get caught transgressing laws, they get penalised there and then on the park or even after (cited).
If officials (through their calls or actions) transgress the laws they cannot be punished in context of the actual game or result…
That would then be blatent cheating, and not something that is part of rugby…
@isigidi – dink dis om seker te maak hulle bind….maar weet nie of dit die skrum meer stabiel maak nie.
@K9-MonsterLeeu – @isigidi –
It has a lot to do with balance and giving the oppo prop something to bind on. The guy with hand on floor has a much more solid base to drive from than the guy binding plus if you hand is on the floor, your shoulder would also be lower than you hips most of the time and that is illegal.
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