Taranaki rugby player charged over alleged assault that left Premier opponent hospitalized

RNZ previously reported that the player had been banned from the field for nine weeks.

Mike Sandle, then the chief executive of the Taranaki Rugby Football Union, told RNZ that a three-member judicial panel had imposed the ban.

He said the penalty was “close to the upper limit” of New Zealand Rugby (NZR) sanctions for hitting a player.

The player was penalized for misconduct under section 10 of the NZR Disciplinary Rules, which covers “conduct on or off the field during or in connection with a match, including (without limitation) tunnels, changing rooms and/or warm-up areas”.

Sandle believed the hit Coastal player was within his rights to report the incident to police.

“The Coastal player was knocked to the ground, an ambulance was called and he was taken to Taranaki Base Hospital and assessed and later discharged,” he told RNZ..

“We are extremely disappointed that this incident has detracted from what was an entertaining game played in good spirits.”

No other players were involved, Sandle said.

Tara Shaskey joined NZME in 2022 as news director and Open Justice reporter. She has been a reporter since 2014 and previously worked at Stuff covering crime and justice, arts and entertainment, and Māori issues.