Ronan O'Gara dodges slap as tempers flair in sideline confrontation

La Rochelle head coach Ronan O’Gara successfully dodged a slap from his opposite number during his side’s match with Bordeaux Begles in the Top 14 over the weekend.

La Rochelle successfully raided their rivals, bagging a hard-fought one-point victory after a fiery match in the south west of France.

Tempers boiled over on the touchline at the Stade Chaban Delmas, with O’Gara angrily celebrating an incident just before halftime, only to be confronted by Bordeaux Begles head coach Christophe Urios.

RFU Belonging – Back in the Game

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RFU Belonging – Back in the Game

After a celebratory fist pump, O’Gara appeared to direct some words in the direction of Urios and the former hooker didn’t take kindly to it and set off to confront O’Gara.

He approached O’Gara and the pair exchanged words before Urios appeared to reach out with a half-hearted cheek slap for the Irishman, who dodged the outreached hand.

Did Ronan O'Gara get a slap here? ?

Credit: @OttavioArenella | #Top14pic.twitter.com/fh05fhYfiV

— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 3, 2022

After the match, RugbyRama report that Urios described former Ireland flyhalf as O’Gara as ‘unbearable’.

“This guy is unbearable,” Urios told the French press. “I regret that the fourth or fifth referee did not do his job. How can we enter the field? How do we connect people? He’s really lucky.

“He goes to the stands, he f*** the m… in the stands. He goes to the edge of the field, he f*** the m… at the edge of the field. He is unbearable. Are you telling me that it must already go to committee? But I don’t care, it’s over. I moved on. I don’t care about him.”

O’Gara was well known for his passion during his playing days, famously getting into it with Leinster and Argentine flyhalf Felipe Contepomi in the PRO12 and at the Rugby World Cup in 2007.

That energy has clearly been brought to his role as a coach in France, where passions boiling over on the sideline are not uncommon.