Toulon to appeal suspended points penalty

Toulon’s appeal against a suspended five-point penalty following comments made by their president Mourad Boudjellal will be heard on Tuesday, European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) has announced.

Boudjellal and the Top 14 club were sanctioned in July after the president suggested in an interview that centre Mathieu Bastareaud’s hearing for allegedly using homophobic language would be heard by the ECPR’s “Mormon side”.

Bastareaud was given a three-week ban having pleaded guilty to verbally abusing an opposing player in a Champions Cup clash with Benetton Treviso in January.

For his comments, an independent disciplinary committee fined Boudjellal €75,000, with a further €25,000 suspended for three years, while Toulon were also the subject of a misconduct complaint and received their suspended five-point penalty.

Boudjellal opted not to appeal the decision to fine him but Toulon have challenged their sanction and the appeal will be heard in London on Tuesday.

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