Ospreys head coach Mark Jones has condemned the online abuse directed at winger Luke Morgan following an incident that left Sharks' Ethan Hooker with a dislocated shoulder. The injury occurred during last weekend's United Rugby Championship match at Brewery Field, when Morgan attempted to dislodge the ball as Hooker scored a breakaway try.
Hooker, an eight-cap Springbok, will miss the remainder of the URC season and is a doubt for South Africa's summer Tests. Morgan, a former Wales international and record try-scorer for the Sevens team, has been subjected to abusive messages targeting both him and his family.
Jones, a former Scarlets and Wales wing, defended Morgan's actions, emphasizing that the player was simply trying to prevent a crucial score. "Luke Morgan is a competitive guy. He's chasing back as hard as he can for his team in what was a tight game. He's done his absolute utmost to do what we ask players to do, which is not give up until the ball is grounded," Jones said.
"Ethan Hooker is a great player and unfortunately he got injured in that incident, but there's no malice in that challenge. Luke was well within his right to try to dislodge the ball."
Jones expressed his dismay at the personal nature of the abuse: "It's a disgrace if people are going to target sportsmen around incidents like that on a sports field to make it personal over an event on the field."
Despite reports that the Sharks requested an investigation, the Ospreys have not heard from the citing commissioner, and Morgan is available for Friday's match against Cardiff. Jones noted that Morgan is resilient but should not have to deal with such abuse. "He's played professional rugby at the highest level. But as resilient as you are, you don't want to be having to deal with that on behalf of your family," he added.