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Go easy on the England players, they're not the first RWC team to take off medals
By Josh Raisey
The reaction to some of the England team refusing to wear their silver medals after the Rugby World Cup final has been staggering over the past few days.
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After falling to South Africa 32-12 in Yokohama on Saturday, the England team have seemingly been called all the names under the sun for not wearing their medals around their neck.
While the team have been defended by some, Eddie Jones’ side have largely been treated with disdain.
But footage has been shared on Twitter by Phil Llewellyn of past runners-up having the exact same reaction as the England team.
In 2003, locks Justin Harrison and Matt Cobain, as well as Stirling Mortlock did not put their medals on, while others took theirs off as they walked away. In 2015, David Pocock is seen not wearing his medal either, but managed to avoid the scorn the English players have received.
https://twitter.com/philllewellyn/status/1191432379467886592?s=20
It gets worse! The great David Pocock took his medal off in the World Cup final of 2015! I mean this guy saves Rhinos and everything but had the audacity to carry his medal around on his lap of honour! ?
I’m done now btw! ? #gettingoverit #movingon pic.twitter.com/3kS4QLi1R7
— Phil Llewellyn (@philllewellyn) November 4, 2019
The common denominator with this England team and the 03 Wallabies is Jones, who coached both sides. Perhaps this is an indication of the mentality that he inculcates into his players, and the belief that he gives them. Although many have described that attitude as being sore losers.
What does seem to be clear is that England did not become the first side to do this, and the entire ordeal may be a case of England-bashing more than anything else. While this may all seem quite trivial to some, the backlash has been immense, despite it being fairly common after all.
The fans at this Rugby World Cup have been nothing but incredible. We made a video looking at some of the highlights of this incredible World Cup for our team that were reporting live from Japan. #RugbyWorldCup
