2023-10-16 20:03:51
Antoine Dupont and New Zealand referee Ben O’Keeffe, during France’s defeat against South Africa, October 15, 2023, in Saint-Denis (Seine-Saint-Denis) FRANCK FIFE / AFP
“I’m not going to act bitter and talk about the refereeing because he lost. But I think the refereeing was not up to par. » Usually so measured in his remarks, Antoine Dupont this time could not hide his emotions, Sunday October 15, at a press conference, a few minutes after the elimination of the Blues against South Africa (28-29 ).
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Difficult to say whether the captain of the French raced against time to participate. The fact remains that the day after the Habs left the road, the referee’s performance raised questions.
At the heart of the controversy, a few whistles – or absences of whistles – which were not to the taste of the players or the supporters of the Stade de France, who loudly expressed their discontent during the match. The social network X (formerly Twitter) has obviously not escaped the torrent of complaints from fans feeling wronged. Even the astronaut Thomas Pesquet gave his little message: “Rugby is a sport which is usually played 15 against 15”he wrote, believing that the referee had favored the Springboks.
“Ben O’Keeffe is a liberal referee, that is to say he is used to letting a lot playnuance Franck Maciello, national director of refereeing at the French Rugby Federation (FFR). The referee is a central element in a match, you have to adapt to him. I doubt the match was decided on his decisions. If the Blues win by one point, we don’t go back on the referee’s whistle. And it might even be the South Africans who would have contested. »
Ultimately, everyone has their opinion, especially since the rules of rugby are not known for their simplicity and encourage disagreements. The point of view of South Africans is necessarily different from that of the French. Thus, the coach of the Springboks, Jacques Nienaber, considered that « Ben [avait] well refereed » et « [avait] managed the match well”. On France Info, the president of the FFR, Florian Grill, avoided giving too much importance to the controversy, declaring that the Blues would not make a complaint about the arbitration, because “this is not the spirit of rugby”.
Read also: France – South Africa: “dramatic and thrilling, brave and cruel”, the view of the foreign press on the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup
The day before, the coach, Fabien Galthié, had preferred “do not go on this ground” when he was questioned about Ben O’Keeffe’s decisions, contenting himself with “congratulate” the Springboks. In his wake, many players from the French XV noted some incomprehension regarding the decisions of the man with the whistle, while admitting, like center Jonathan Danty, that “it was not the refereeing that lost the match [aux Bleus] ». When they have the heart to watch the images of this quarter-final again, Antoine Dupont and his teammates will be able to form a more precise opinion on some contentious actions which are circulating on social networks.
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