The Lions have reportedly put contract negotiations with Elton Jantjies on hold after the player was apparently involved in an early morning incident in a Durban hotel three weeks ago.

In the aftermath of the Lions’ 27-17 defeat to the Sharks at Kings Park on 25 May, Jantjies is believed to have left the team’s beachfront hotel for an unauthorised night out.

According to Rapport newspaper, the 28-year-old only came back to the hotel between 04:00 and 04:30 on Sunday morning, and upon his return he bumped into Lions CEO Rudolf Straeuli in the foyer.

In response to the incident and what had happened the previous night in the match – when Jantjies reportedly went against orders from captain Kwagga Smith on the field – the Lions immediately retracted their new contract offer to Jantjies.

In the following weeks, Jantjies was dropped and then benched for their games against the Stormers and Hurricanes respectively, with the Lions only citing a breach of team protocol as the main reason for his omission from the team.

Straeuli declined to confirm or deny the incident and refused to comment on the contract negotiations between the franchise and Jantjies’ representatives, saying that if a new deal is brokered the news will be made public next Thursday.

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