When Beyers Swanepoel dropped the Lions in the middle of a final to catch a flight, he knows how they felt. because Swanepoel has now been traded by the Lions. A release from the union on Thursday (April 9) said Swanepoel's contract, which had a year to run, had been "terminated with immediate effect". Albeit the blow was softened by the threadbare claim that the province and the player had "reached a mutual agreement to part ways". Lions chief executive Jono Leaf-Wright was quoted as saying: "It has been an unfortunate period for all parties involved but we have now brought the matter to a close, allowing everyone to move forward. At Lions cricket we hold ourselves to the highest professional standards and take matters of this nature very seriously." Swanepoel was quoted as saying: "I loved my season representing the Pride [sic] and it will always hold a special place in my heart. I sincerely apologize to the Lions family as a whole for what happened in the Final, and I can assure everyone that numerous lessons have been learned." When Swanepoel left the field after 43 overs of the Titans' innings in the One-Day Cup (ODC) final against the Wanderers on March 29, he was not ill, injured, or otherwise indisposed. After that, he went to the airport to catch a flight to England, where he was going to sign a one-year contract to play for Worcestershire in the county championship. Worcestershire started their season against Derbyshire five days after the ODC final. The Lions were entitled to be denied a replacement fielder when the reason for Swanepoel's absence was established. With one ball remaining, the Titans prevailed by three wickets, a result that could have been different if the home team had all of their fielders. That's bad enough, but it gets worse. Domestic cricketers - those who are not contracted by CSA - need both the national body and their provincial union to sign a No Objection Certificate (NOC) before they can play for a foreign team. Despite lacking either of those signatures, Swanepoel traveled to England. As a result, Worcestershire did not select him. Instead they hurried to hire Oliver Hannon-Dalby for their first two championship matches. For Swanepoel, things could get even worse than they are. He has wrecked not only his relationship with the Lions but also his relationship with the CSA, who have accused him of discrediting the sport. According to the CSA's regulations, the punishment for him is "a suspension of between five four-day matches or 10 one-day/T20 matches and a life ban." He has been charged with a level four offense, which is the most serious category. A life sentence would be insufficient punishment. But it might well be informally imposed: which organisation, in whatever country, would sign Swanepoel knowing he has gone AWOL during a match? Next month, Swanepoel will turn 28. He has played 48 first-class matches, 55 list A games and 48 T20s. From May to August 2024, when he didn't leave his South African team in the lurch and actually presented a signed NOC to his English employers, he played in 17 of those matches across all formats for Kent. As a result, he cannot be held accountable for not knowing better. That's the point of getting experience: you'll know what to do the next time you're in the same situation. And you do it. Swanepoel knew what to do. He not only chose not to do it. He chose to do the wrong thing instead. "I loved my season representing the Pride and it will always hold a special place in my heart," is a quote that has been attributed to him. It is worth repeating. I sincerely apologize to the Lions family as a whole for what happened in the Final and can assure everyone that numerous lessons have been learned." If he "loved" his time with the Lions, why was he running away from them so quickly? The inconsequential capitalization of "Pride" and "Final" does not deceive anyone. How come both weren't important enough to Swanepoel for him to stay with his team until the end of the game? Furthermore, what absurdity surrounds "what transpired" in the final? "What I did" was the only phrase that would have been acceptable. Too little, too late, too glib, too fake. He is completely gone from the Lions.