/ 3 August 2010

De Villiers’s misconduct hearing set for Friday

Sanzar says a misconduct charge against South Africa rugby coach Peter de Villiers will be heard in Cape Town on Friday.

The governing body for South Africa, New Zealand and Australia’s combined rugby competitions announced Tuesday that the charge will be heard by its judicial officer Jannie Lubbe at the South African Rugby Union offices.

De Villiers is charged with breaching Sanzar’s Code of Conduct in comments made July 21 on Australian television, when he criticised the performance of Tri-Nations referees and implied a conspiracy to bolster next year’s World Cup in New Zealand.

“I’ve got my own observations about the last two Tests, and maybe I can’t say it in public, but we do have a World Cup in New Zealand next year and maybe it was the right thing for them to win the games so they can attract more people to the games next year,” he said. – Sapa, AP