Los Pumas captain to miss Stade Francais' match
NEWS: Argentina skipper Pablo Matera will miss Stade Francais’ away game at Montpellier on Saturday after picking up a short ban for having accumulated three yellow cards, officials said.
Matera, who scored his first try in the Top 14 in last weekend’s 29-9 victory over Castres but also received a third yellow card in four months, is suspended until February 6, said the LNR, the body that runs professional rugby union in France.
The Argentine backrow has been working hard to rehabilitate his image after a racism row saw him suspended as Pumas captain.
Last month he said he was just “an immature boy” when he posted tweets deemed to be racist in 2011 and 2013 and which saw him briefly suspended by the Pumas.
The flank had been a key player as Argentina shocked the All Blacks during the Rugby Championship in Australia where the furore erupted.
Matera, Jaguares hooker Santiago Socino and Bordeaux lock Guido Petti, were all briefly suspended for what were described as “discriminatory” and “xenophobic” posts.
However, just two days after Argentine rugby officials said the tweets were “unacceptable” the three were reinstated when it was reported other players would strike in support of their teammates.
#TOP14
Ce dimanche 7 février, la programmation a été aménagée en partenariat entre la @LNRofficiel et @canalplus à la suite de l’annonce de la diffusion de PSG/OM, afin de permettre aux amateurs de sport de profiter de l’ensemble du programme de ce grand week-end pic.twitter.com/vIExKEBoBS— TOP 14 Rugby (@top14rugby) February 4, 2021
