Blues winger Rene Ranger has been suspended for two weeks for his late tackle on Bjorn Basson during the Blues 23-29 victory over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.

rugbyweek

SANZAR Duty Judicial Officer Mike Heron accepted a guilty plea from Rene Ranger of the Blues for contravening Law 10.4 (e) Dangerous Tackling – A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously.

Ranger was cited during a Super Rugby Match after he made late and dangerous contact with Bulls player Bjorn Basson in the 79th minute of the match between the Bulls and Blues at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday 10 March 2012.

The incident occurred in the 79th minute of the match between the Bulls and the Blues played at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday 10 March 2012.

Ranger suspension from all forms of the game will last for two weeks up to and including the 25th of March 2012.

SANZAR Duty Judicial Officer Mike Heron assessed the case and said, “I reviewed the footage on the intranet and the live feed. I discussed the same with the player and coach (and later discussed the case with his counsel Mr Weyers).

“It shows Rene Ranger diving towards the other player, who was also diving to score the try, and ultimately hitting the player with his shoulder on the back of the player. At that point, the tackle did not involve his arms and was late.

“A careful review of at least one angle shows that Ranger initially was attempting to use his arms and appeared to launch towards the other player while that other player was in the air. In my view, Ranger was initially attempting to tackle the Bulls number 11 but had to pull out as the Bulls player was too close to the ground. The result was that Ranger’s arms were not used in the tackle.

“In my view the tackle was reckless, and late (but this was a dynamic and very fast moving situation).”

“I accept Ranger’s account that he was attempting a legitimate tackle and had no intention of injuring the Bulls player. “