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How quickly we forget
The France coach, Marc Lièvremont, refused to blame the referee, Craig Joubert, for the one-point defeat by the All Blacks, just as his opposite number, Graham Henry, declined to finger Wayne Barnes for his team's elimination at the hands of Les Bleus in the 2007 quarter-final.
The France captain, Thierry Dusautoir, queried a number of decisions with Joubert and was particularly incensed when, after play had been allowed to continue for nearly two minutes while the fly-half Morgan Parra was receiving treatment for a head injury, Joubert called a halt while Aaron Cruden received lengthy treatment after twisting a knee.
Lièvremont said he had made a pact with himself after meeting Joubert two days before the game that, no matter what happened, he would not criticise the referee or make accusations against him in defeat.
The France scrum-half, Dimitri Yachvili, had no such qualms. "The referee was under a lot of pressure," he said. "He did not want us to win. That said, I think New Zealand deserved their win because they are the best team in the world. They have shown that throughout the tournament."
Dusautoir was questioning Joubert from the opening minutes when France were penalised at a scrum even though the All Blacks prop Owen Franks had dropped to his knees, and when Richie McCaw forced a vital turnover four minutes from time, the France captain turned to the touch judge Nigel Owens insisting that the New Zealand captain had been offside.
"I am very disappointed with the result but I do not feel like criticising the referee," said Dusautoir. "He is one of the best in the world and we did not do enough to get the vital penalty we needed at the end."
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/201...referee-france
80 Minutes, 15 Positions, No Protection, Wanna Ruck?
Ruck Me, Maul Me, Make Me Scrum!
Education is Important, but Rugby is Importanter!
Yeah I've got no idea why World Rugby would push Joubert under the bus to appease a minnow of Rugby.
because world rugby is based in Dublin?
they want to keep the neighbours happy.