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Mallett, Willemse could be back on air together ... on Saturday!

Cape Town - Ashwin WillemseNick Mallett and Naas Botha could all be back on air together as early as this weekend.

That did not seem likely after Saturday's dramatic scenes that saw Willemse walk off a live SuperSport Super Rugby production, accusing Mallett and Botha of patronising him while saying he could no longer work with them. 

READ: SuperSport, MultiChoice: No racism in Willemse drama

It sparked a massive reaction from social media, with thousands of rugby lovers engaging and many of them backing Willemse for taking a stand against black people being undermined in sport. 

SuperSport met with the three men on Monday in an effort to get to the bottom of what transpired, and while they did not achieve that, they see no reason to pull any of the analysts off the air. 

"I would have to see what our weekend schedule is ... I know we have a PRO14 final and Super Rugby," SuperSport CEO Gideon Khobane said on Monday when asked if the trio would be back on the air on Saturday.

"If we take them off it’s like we’ve already judged them and who is right and who is wrong. I don’t think that’s fair.

"It will send a message to the public that this one is on because he is right and this one is off because he is wrong … it’s not fair.

"At this point, nobody’s job is on the line, up until we come to the end of our investigation."

MultiChoice CEO Calvo Mawela said he saw no reason why things couldn't go back to normal. 

"From today’s discussions it’s very clear that they can continue to work together," he said.

"We didn’t see anything that says they are not prepared to work together."

Watch the press conference below. Please note, sound only starts 1:50 into the video.


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