Cape Town - Chiliboy Ralepelle and Bjorn Basson appeared before a South African Rugby Union judicial committee on Tuesday to investigate the Springbok pair's expulsion from last year's tour of Britain and Ireland after they tested positive for a banned stimulant.
Ralepelle and Basson, who both play for the Super Rugby champion Bulls, arrived at SARU's offices in Cape Town, where a three-man panel will hear their cases and could ban them for up to two years.
The players returned positive tests for methylhexaneamine following the Springboks' victory over Ireland in Dublin on November 6.
They were sent home from the tour - after playing against Wales a week later - and provisionally suspended from rugby pending the outcome of the hearing. Their "B" samples confirmed the test results last month.
From January 1, 2011, methylhexaneamine was reclassified to a "specified stimulant" by the World Anti-Doping Agency due to its recent inadvertent use by a number of athletes, meaning the players can be spared the two-year ban if there is a logical explanation for the positive tests. Ralepelle and Basson could instead receive a retroactive three-month ban or be let off with a warning.
Methylhexaneamine can be used as a decongestant and a dietary supplement and the Springboks said a new sports drink they used on the tour could have been responsible.
Both players hope to be part of the Bulls' defense of its Super Rugby title this season. The Pretoria-based team's first game is on February 19, against the Lions.
Bulls coach Frans Ludeke told supersport.com that he had delayed the naming of his team for Saturday's first warmup game of the new season in the hope that Ralepelle and Basson would be cleared.
"They are key guys and we are holding thumbs (hoping) that things work out well for us," Ludeke said. "For us and for the season ahead we obviously hope there will be some good news.
"If we get good news ... we will work out a strategy to get them back into action as quickly as possible."
The 23-year-old Basson set a single-season record in South Africa's domestic Currie Cup last year by scoring 21 tries for the unheralded Griquas team, beating former Springbok great Carel du Plessis' 21-year-old record. The promising winger, who has four caps for South Africa, signed for the Bulls in the offseason.
In a statement issued last week, Basson said his "focus and attention" was on Tuesday's hearing after "a frustrating experience that I never want to experience again."
Ralepelle, 24, a hooker, was the first black player to captain the Springboks when he led South Africa against a World XV in 2006 at the age of 20. It also made him the youngest-ever player to captain the national team.
He has played 18 Tests, most of them as backup hooker to regular Springboks skipper John Smit.