Sonny Bill’s club president joins him in stands

Toulon president Mourad Boudjellal will join Sonny Bill Williams in the grandstands after being banned from the French Top 14 rugby field during games.

The fiery club boss was told yesterday to stay off the pitch for 30 days after he ignored orders to move away from the team bench, during the season’s first match, News Limited reports.

Boudjellal will face another disiciplinary hearing next week over similar actions, including donning a yellow arm band and posing as a water boy just to get on the field.

League convert Williams’ proposed three-week injury layoff has elapsed and he, according to News Limited, is still limping to training and using a crutch.

Meanwhile under-fire Toulon coach Tana Umaga will remain in the role for the newly-promoted French first division team, according to club president Boudjellal.

Former All Black Umaga has come under pressure after Toulon’s slow start to the new Top 14 season, which has seen the big-spending club win only two of their opening five games despite heavy investment in a raft of high-profile players including Jerry Collins, Joe van Niekerk and Williams.

There have also been persistent rumours, notably in the French press, that former Wallaby and Stade Francais coach John Connolly could be taking over from Umaga, AFP reports.

“Tana Umaga and Jean-Jacques Crenca are the coaches of Toulon,” Boudjellal told L’Independant newspaper on Friday.

“We’re in seventh spot on 12 points, with a team that has a lot of injuries and a lot of problems,” said the president who made his fortunes from the comic book industry.

“It would not be a good time to upset the balance they’re attempting to install in the club by bringing into the middle of all that a third part.”

Boudjellal dismissed talk of Connolly coming to Toulon.

“I think we could rather talk about ‘John Connerie’ because that’s what that rumour is,” Boudjellal said, using the French word which means rubbish.

Umaga himself also played down the rumours of his job going to the Australian.

“But I am very annoyed by it. I do my job and I ask my players to give their all to be at the level the president has demanded of them,” Umaga said.

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