Basson was red-carded on Saturday during the Cheetahs 61-28 win over Zebre in Bloemfontein, and for this, he will have to face a citing commission.

Basson flew into a ruck in the dying stages of the encounter, and in the process, his made contact with the head of one the players from the Italian team.

The player will face the commission on Thursday evening, and it is expected that he will plead guilty to the offense, and this may see given getting off with a lighter sanction.

His prior record in the tournament will also be taken into action.

The coach, Franco Smith, says that he cannot see Basson doing anything else but to plead guilty.

“The hearing is only on Wednesday evening and at this stage, we don’t want to talk about that too much.

“I think one will be stupid if you don’t plead guilty.

“Voete (Basson) has got a good and clear record in the Pro14, and there are a few mitigating factors as they call it.

“I think it that it can also be due to the frustration that stems from the previous game against the Kings when they were able to slow down our ball”.

Basson’s red card is the first ever by a Cheetahs player since the franchise joined the Pro14 in September 2017.

The versatile loose forward, Abongile Nonkontwana, who normally plays as loose forward has been training in the second row with the team this week. This suggests that the Cheetahs are preparing sanction, but, it remains to be seen if Nonkontwana will be fit enough to play this week, as he is training with a bit of a cold.

Saturday’s Pro14 derby between the Cheetahs and the Kings at the Toyota Stadium kicks off at 16:00.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport