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Cape Town - Nick Mallett was spotted leaving a Cape Town hospital with his wife, Jane, on Tuesday morning.
It has been an eventful few days for the former Springbok coach, now working as an analyst for SuperSport, since he found himself at the centre of a controversy involving former Springbok wing Ashwin Willemse that has gripped the nation.
On Saturday night, Willemse - also a SuperSport analyst - walked off the live set following the Lions v Brumbies Super Rugby match in Johannesburg, claiming to have been patronised by Mallett and fellow colleague, Naas Botha.
Willemse went on to say that he "can't work with people who undermine other people" and that he was "glad it happened on live TV so that people can see".
The incident has caused intense debate across South Africa, with opinions flying around social and mainstream media.
SuperSport facilitated a meeting on Monday between Mallett, Willemse and Botha, but it was confirmed afterwards that "no conclusions" had been found.
Mallett was first to leave that meeting as he had to catch a flight back to Cape Town.
On Tuesday, Sport24 approached him when leaving a local hospital.
"You must be joking!" he smiled when asked if he would give an interview to clear the air.
The couple was about to leave for a getaway, but Mallett is expected to be back in Johannesburg on Saturday to join Willemse and Botha in studio.
According to SuperSport CEO Gideon Khobane, all three parties were encouraged to take some time off to gather their thoughts and take stock of what had happened.
"All three of them need a bit of time to reflect," he said.
"You can imagine that the past 48 hours has been a crazy whirlwind. They haven’t been able to sleep and eat and engage with their families.
"They each want a bit of time to introspect to find out exactly what caused what happened.
"We don’t want to force anybody to divulge what they are feeling inside because it’s a very emotional issue."
Watch the press briefing below. Please note, sound only starts 1:50 into the video.
