Johannesburg - The South African Rugby Union (Saru) on Monday deplored an incident in Hong Kong on Sunday in which Paul Treu, coach of the Springbok Sevens side, had racist remarks hurled at him.
It was shortly after the South African side had come unstuck against Samoa in the semi-final round of the popular Hong Kong tournament.
South African freelance journalist David van der Sandt was interviewing Treu when two men interrupted them in Afrikaans and blamed the defeat on the coach.
"They said it was because he had selected too many black players and they also spat in our direction," said Van der Sandt, who later photographed the men.
"When I asked them to leave us in peace, one of them called me a 'kaffirboetie'."
Treu said from Hong Kong on Monday that he had never shied away from criticism if his side had played badly.
Looking for tickets
"I just don't know why they had to make it a race issue. It's a great pity it happened in the presence of foreigners and representatives of the International Rugby Board," said Treu.
"I think I remembered their faces from before. They were in the hotel with us earlier in the week, having come to find out whether we could help them with tickets.
"Maybe, we created too high an expectation when we fared so well early in the IRB's Sevens series. Maybe, we should become more accustomed to this type of thing."
Neither Treu nor Van der Sandt got the men's names.
Saru CEO Johan Prinsloo was stunned when he heard about the incident.
"Of course, we have no control over those people, but what they don't realise is that it is only rugby that suffers," said Prinsloo.
"I really wish they would come forward so that we can talk to them.
Undermines hard work
"We are all South Africans and if one of our rugby teams goes to play overseas it represents the country and all the people.
"Such behaviour undermines things we're working very hard to build up.
"There is no longer any place for people like them in our society. "
