Mallett due back in studio this weekend

Former Bok coach and rugby analyst Nick Mallett is set for a return to the SuperSport screens this weekend after an absence of almost two months.

It will be Mallett’s first appearance since Ashwin Willemse walked out on his fellow panellists Naas Botha and Mallett at the SuperSport studios in Randburg after a Super Rugby game between the Lions and the Brumbies at the Ellis Park Stadium on May 19.

SuperSport spokesperson Clinton van der Berg confirmed that Mallett was scheduled to be part of Saturday’s Super Rugby matches to be played in Johannesburg and Durban.

The Lions host the Bulls in a Gauteng derby at Ellis Park, while the Sharks welcome the Jaguares at Kings Park.

Botha and Willemse would not be joining him in the studio, Van der Berg said.

“Naas worked last weekend and is not booked for this one.

“The issue of Ashwin remains unresolved and it has been handed over to the Human Rights Commission.”

Willemse‚ who represented the Springboks in 19 Tests between 2003 and 2007‚ spoke of being labelled a “quota player” and refused to be “patronised by two individuals who played in an apartheid/segregated era”.

He said in a radio interview this week he had not ruled out returning to SuperSport alongside Botha and Mallett.