Didier, a Wallabies tourist in 1990, has been banned from playing in the Super Rugby curtain-raiser at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night because of an incident almost five years ago.

The 58-year-old was ready to pull the boots on again this week to play for the Brumbies legends against the Queensland Barbarians in a retro exhibition match.

But instead of finding his ankle-high boots, Didier has been slapped with a 12-week suspension for abusing a referee. The twist is the incident happened in September, 2012.

Didier admits he's had run-ins with the ACT rugby judiciary in the past having fronted the panel more than 20 times for "going the knuckle" on the field.

But after playing for Royals in a losing grand final in 2012, Didier took his frustrations out verbally on the referees and the issued has remained unresolved since.

Didier, 54 at the time, retired after the grand final and decided not to front the judiciary as he was never going to play again.

The matter has been carried over year to year by the judiciary and when Didier was asked to play for the Brumbies legends, he told the club about the incident.

The fact the Brumbies legends match is an exhibition game was thrown out the window and the judiciary imposed a 12-week ban at a hearing earlier this week.

It was hoped Didier would be shown some leniency, but the match falls under judiciary rules because it is sanctioned by the ACT Rugby Union.

"It's gutless and weak. The judiciary is hiding behind guidelines and saying they don't have flexibility," Didier said.

"What a crock. This is a promotional match. I've given 35 years of service to rugby and what does that count for? Nothing.

"It's not ACT rugby's fault or the Brumbies. It's the judiciary and they showed no intestinal fortitude whatsoever.

"This is a positive game with the legends and a bit of fun. But they just didn't get it and they didn't care about ACT rugby and where we sit at this moment."

The judiciary said Didier failed to appear at multiple hearings and cited rule 46.4 for why the punishment was imposed on the retired front-rower.

"Following a citing issued in September 2012 for abuse of match officials, the player in question, Mr. Geoff Didier, has failed to appear at a scheduled judiciary hearing on multiple occasions," the judiciary said in a statement.

"Brumbies Rugby completely support the decision of our Judicial Committee and the independence and integrity of the judicial process. The Code of Conduct is clear that all incidents of referee abuse are entirely unacceptable."

The Brumbies are pulling a host of former stars out of retirement for the legends match, including Jeremy Paul, Andrew Walker, Stephen Larkham and Peter Ryan.

The players will wear 1996 heritage jerseys and it's a timely reminder of the Brumbies' importance to Australian rugby as the game continues to be crippled by Super Rugby uncertainty.

Super Rugby officials are weighing up whether to change the competition, including the option to axe one Australian and two South African teams.

The Brumbies, Western Force and Melbourne Rebels are in the firing line in Australia and all three clubs are nervously waiting for an answer on their futures.

Didier has been a passionate supporter of Canberra rugby for almost 40 years and desperately wanted to be a part of the celebrations, but won't be able to get on the field.

Didier wrote a letter to the judiciary accepting responsibility for his actions and offering to apologise to the referees.

"I'm 58 - how many games do they think I've got left? I've probably got one, and now they've taken it away," Didier said.

"I gave the referee and linesman a gobful and I'm not justifying it. There was no excuse and I went into self-imposed retirement.

"I've been the judiciary plenty of times. Probably 20 times during my career, usually for going the knuckle. But this was the first time for something to do with a referee."

Didier was the captain of the Kookaburras in 1995 and went on to play for the Brumbies in the first season of Super Rugby in 1996.

"This [legends] match is the shot in the arm that rugby in Canberra needs at the moment," Didier said.

"What better way than to bring back some of the characters of the past. I'm a character."

SUPER RUGBY ROUND SEVEN

Saturday: ACT Brumbies v Queensland Reds at Canberra Stadium, 7.40pm. Tickets available for $20 if purchased before 6pm. Curtain-raiser: Brumbies legends v Reds Barbarians at 6pm.