World Rugby has confirmed a formal review into allegations by Tom Curry that he was the victim of a racist slur during England's 16-15 World Cup semi-final loss to South Africa in Paris on Saturday. Curry drew the incident involving hooker Bongi Mbonambi to the attention of referee Ben O'Keeffe around the half-hour mark of the match at the Stade de France. The alleged slur is not audible on the referee's link. South Africa had previously announced they were investigating the incident, and rugby union's global governing body has confirmed it is also looking into it.
World Rugby takes all allegations of discriminatory behaviour exceptionally seriously, and they can confirm that they are formally reviewing the allegation made by England's Tom Curry about the use of discriminatory language during the England versus South Africa Rugby World Cup 2023 semi-final on Saturday. No indication has been given of how long the investigation will take, complicating South Africa's build-up to the World Cup final. Still, there is a desire to conclude as soon as possible.
Apart from the disruption caused by the fallout from the incident, the Springboks face the possible scenario of entering Saturday's clash with New Zealand without a front-line hooker. When Malcolm Marx was ruled out of the tournament by a knee injury in mid-September, fly-half Handre Pollard was called up instead of a replacement front row, leaving Mbonambi as the squad's only specialist. Deon Fourie and Marco van Staden have been viewed as sufficient cover at hooker, but both players are primarily flankers.
A player cannot be called into a World Cup squad to cover for suspension. Still, a special dispensation can be granted if it is felt the integrity of a match might be affected, in this instance, by scrums having to be uncontested. If Mbonambi were to be banned, it would leave South Africa in a very precarious situation regarding their hookers because he is the only specialised hooker in the South African squad.
The victory for South Africa means they now face New Zealand in a World Cup final at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday, October 28 (9 pm kick-off SAST). The defeat for England means they come up against Argentina in next week's World Cup third-place play-off at the Stade de France in Paris on Friday, October 27 (9 pm kick-off SAST).
