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Michael Cheika faces overwhelming criticism after Fiji comments

Australia head coach Michael Cheika has faced a huge backlash from the rugby world after he criticised Fiji for their referral of Reece Hodge’s tackle on Peceli Yato on Saturday.

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Hodge felt the brunt of the Fijian runners on a number of occasions and was regularly rag-dolled by the athletic Fijians throughout the Pool D match.

The Wallabies winger managed to unintentionally get one of his own back late in the first half, concussing Yato with a tackle that many have deemed dangerous and worthy of a red card. Fiji subsequently referred the tackle to World Rugby, and Hodge faces a hearing on Wednesday which could potentially end his Rugby World Cup.

But Cheika has said that what Fiji did was not in the spirit of the game. Fiji coach John McKee did not approach Cheika about the tackle after the game, instead going straight to the Citing Officer – which Cheika likened to going behind his back.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2xdncugujE/

The Wallabies coach has since been lampooned by former players, journalists and fans on Twitter for his attitude. Cheika has been accused of hypocrisy, seeing as his criticism of Fiji could equally be deemed against the spirit of the game, while others have questioned why Fiji would need to approach him about the tackle anyway.

McKee and his coaching team are perfectly within their rights to refer this tackle for citation, and unless Cheika feels it was an illegal tackle himself, he should have nothing to worry about. If he does think it was dangerous, then Fiji did the right thing to ensure acts like this do not go unpunished.

Continued below..

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This is what has been said:

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After scoring the opening try of the game, Yato was forced off the field following the tackle by Hodge, and Fiji never looked the same after impressing in the first half.

While a ban for Hodge may be justice for what many feel was a red card, it won’t help Fiji’s cause, as they ultimately lost the game and have now lost one of their best players for the contest against Uruguay as well this week. They are obviously entitled to feel aggrieved at the outcome of the tackle and will now be more than a little confused after Cheika’s accusations.

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M
Mzilikazi 10 minutes ago
The numbers show Super Rugby Pacific just got even tougher

I’m not confident that our Australian sides will set“ the heather on fire” this year, as they say in Scotland, or probably in some households, Dunedin too. Starting with Qld., They should, with the roster they have, be the team to beat in Australia, and a tough assignment for any of the NZ teams, either side of the Tasman.


But so far they have been erratic, brilliant plays interspersed with poor handling, poor decision making, and sheer stupidity. The latter highlighted by both McReight and Daugunu, albeit in different games, handling the ball at the ruck, when lying on the ground. Would like to see a “stupidity fine” for such actions, say $1000.00 for first offence…and that is a serious comment.


I would see this weekend in Christchurch as a tough one for the Reds, especially without LSL still, and now Flook and Uru. Any team with Will Jordan has to be respected.


The Waratahs sit on two wins, but by 1 and five points only. Their roster is strong, but still they don’t look a cohesive team yet. The Force are a far better team this year, and could well cause an upset in this upcoming game.


I think the Brumbies will struggle more this year to get up over the top sides, especially the NZ teams, and away from home. I feel Stephen Larkham has a ceiling as a coach, which he is struggling the breach. Taking on the Blues in Auckland could turn nasty. Vern Cotter’s scrum focus, and success in that aera so far will be a big test for our side.


Where I see th NZ sides, alll of them, ahead of our teams, is the speed and accuracy of their breakdown work. Their scrum halves have a far easier role than any Australian 9. The other area of superiority for the NZ teams is the speed at which they exploit areas, take chances.


Anyway, upset results so far have certainly made this year far more interesting than previous years. Long may this continue.

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