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'We stuffed up' - Nienaber admits directing waterboy during 'disgraceful' incident
By Ian Cameron
Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber has taken responsibility for the behaviour of their waterboy during their watershed Rugby Championship 31 – 29 win over the All Blacks on the Gold Coast.
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It was a dramatic and thrilling Test match for the ages, but there was one sideline incident with the officials which stood out in the Cbus Stadium.
At one point during the contest the Springboks waterboy could be seen following the assistant referee up the sideline after a Springbok kick into touch, talking to him, an incident branded as ‘disgraceful’ by rugby writer Alisdair Hogg, who tweeted a video of the incident.
Great to see from referee Matthew Carley in the #RSAvNZL #RugbyChampionship match. The way the Boks staff & players have been behaving towards officials and the laws of the game has been disgraceful. pic.twitter.com/1Yv5ixenyR
— Alisdair Hogg (@ajshogg) October 2, 2021
Referee Matthew Carley took the waterboy aside and warned him that he would send him off if he continued to harang the AR on the touchline. “If I see you chasing our touch judge up the line again, you’ll be off.”
Nienaber has apologised and admitted that the waterboy was in fact acting on the direction of the Springboks’ coaches’ box.
“We thought it was a 50:22. We got it wrong at the top. The ruck was inside New Zealand’s half and it was two passes back and then we kicked the 50:22. It’s a new concept for us. It’s not something that we have played and it’s a rule that changed. We played the British & Irish Lions, the last game was the seventh of August and the next game was Argentina and this law was part of it.
“I’ll put my hand on up and say we got it wrong and we asked him to challenge. We were so sure but then we looked back at the video and saw that we got it completely wrong.’
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Nienaber confirmed that he used an audio link with the waterboy to direct him to challenge the AR.
“Like I say, my fault. I thought it was a 50:22. Where we kicked the ball was our half and it went out in their 22, but we passed it back [into our half].
“I think Australia and New Zealand have had two competitions under that law, so they’re a little bit more familiar with it. Not that it’s any excuse. We just wanted him to notify [the AR]. We apologise, we just got it wrong.”
“We saw it live and then re-winded and then… sorry. We stuffed it up.”
The Springboks will play Wales, Scotland and England to end the international season, but they may need to brush up on their laws before travelling north.
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Don't read below the line is as fine a maxim as you'll get. Bloody hell. Rugby depends on respect for refs. The Boks, and a (hopefully small) subset of their fans, seem dead set on undermining that. Nienaber's comments are ridiculous. It's not that he got the call wrong technically which matters. It's the fact he thinks it's ok to have water boys (including the Boks DoR on occasion) pitch side harranging the officials. Even if they'd been technically correct, the behaviour is not ok. It's a key difference from many other sports, especially football. Personally, I'd like to see that firm difference continued, not eroded.
Ben Smith - Talking points after his Halo team gets beat. The same team running relentlessly a Psyop media surge, that endlessly harps about NZ are the only ones that play the game properly and crap on other Rugby brands for being boring, lost to the Springboks, the most exciting game of the series, by miles more entertaining than the pre-ordained wins vs Australia with mandatory Aus throwing 2 interception tries a game.
His 3 Points were:
1) 'Waterboy destroys Rugby as we know it'.
A minor bunch of nothing kerfuffle about a waterboy being told off, is 'deeply undermining the game' [Much Like Springboks rugby playing style, unlike The All Blacks that bring nothing but joy]
2) 'De Allende deserved to concede a pen'
Avoids any mention of Barrets dive injury feign, that won a pen from a Francois Steyn follow up, where the player was brushed by a follow up.
3) 'Rassie Video Very Bad'.
Umpteenth condemnation of atrocious officiating review vid
Finishes with a repeat mention of Rassies 62 minute analysis, and how scandalous it was to do. Which was done on one of the most atrocious bent officiating every perpetuated. Which amongst a massive list of proven inconsistencies including 2.5x longer advantage times for the B&I Lions repeatedly, also saw Berry ignore a Black Captain of the current RWC2019 playing on his own home ground be repeatedly waved away, whilst indulging every whim of a hyper complaining Alun Wyn-Jones. All this in 'BLM' era and times, Amazed overt outright 'Racism' was never mentioned in his manner.
So in a great intense test match, the most entertaining the entire series incl the year before when Boks weren't involved and was virtual procession for NZ, this is Ben SMiths thoughts.
A consistent hater & who perpetually vomits on all thing Springbok. Sees the game falling apart, because of a out of order RSA waterboy, who was warned off in the game, deals with the easiest to explain away, of again quite a few contentious calls, but well far from the howler of his bud Berry, The racist, with a bent watch.
Officiating to Springboks has been consistently questionable in the Trinations series of old on travel, Bizmark du Plessis's 2x Yellows to red Card dismissal being the flagbearer of ref pressurising and overt garbage dished up.
It seems waning Aus & NZ Lone wolf power house down under, fear RSA now being involved in the 'moneyed' North.
Ergo Him, Kirwan, Laurie Mains all fellow Bok Pukers, Create the narrative of how Boks gone soft for not being involved against them.
From yesterday, it didn't seem missing you lot, since the RWC2019, left them that soft, as the Bok Bench literally monstered the All Black forwards, with the first NZ 2nd half with no tries for the AB's in ages & just a few ropey pens.
Change your tune, you are a perpetual hater & bleater like the rest of your hater ref buddies, its why RWC is the benchmark in Union, as the blowing isn't just for the anointed ones.
Where's Mains prediction 6 Bok players not even test standard? Where does that leave NZ after yesterday then, was told it was yours by 20+
So much puke to clean up.
You hate us we know it, and we end the bulk of your winning runs & you hate it.
'Disgraceful' - because they got a brand new law wrong and questioned an official?
JN has stood up, taken it on the chin and apologised. It was a ding-dong, cracker of a test match between two titanic rivals...
yet this is what the column inches are being devoted to???
Utterly pathetic!
absolute junk Ian, what a crap bit of journodumb!
Blame lies squarely at the feet of World Rugby who have allowed this kind of touchline behaviour to proliferate. Time-wasting, coaches on the pitch in the guise of waterboys, medics in in-goal areas coaching players, refs being undermined all the time... just ridiculous the lot of it. What's happened with the Erasmus hearing by the way? Why hasn't he been sanctioned yet? Been two months since the Lions tour and not a peep from WR yet!