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Some rugby fans were confused after banned La Rochelle head coach Ronan O’Gara was spotted in the stands in an empty Aviva Stadium in Dublin as his side took on Ulster.
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The Champions Cup Round 2 match was originally scheduled to take place at the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast, but the concerns over the semi-frozen pitch meant that the EPCR took the decision to make Ulster move the game to their nominated back-up stadium, which in this case was the Aviva.
The game is being played behind closed doors and cameras then picked O’Gara watching the game from behind advertising hoardings.
Many were confused on Twitter as O’Gara is currently serving a 10-week ban which the LNR slapped on him for an ‘attack on best interests of rugby’.
With no crowd in the stadium, La Rochelle head coach Ronan O'Gara is watching from behind the posts ?#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/D5YEbfmm6O
— Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) December 17, 2022
One Ulster fan wryly wrote: “Ronan O’Gara serving a touchline ban… 5m from the touchline.”
Ronan O’Gara serving a touchline ban……
5m from the touchline ?
— Ian Frizzell (@rava_ian) December 17, 2022
Another account observed: “How can the banned O’Gara be allowed to give instructions from an empty terrace and how come La Rochelle supporters got in but no Ulster.”
How can the banned O’Gara be allowed to give instructions from an empty terrace and how come La Rochelle supporters got in but no Ulster.
— John T Glover (@spikedshoe) December 17, 2022
Another fan wrote: “Is anyone surprised that a French club is happily allowed to get their way even when it’s blatantly wrong? O’Gara even blatantly ignoring a ban and is coaching from the sidelines.”
Is anyone surprised that a French club is happily allowed to get their way even when it’s blatantly wrong? O’Gara even blatantly ignoring a ban and is coaching from the sidelines.
— 1 (@Jfknotme123) December 17, 2022
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The argument La Rochelle and O’Gara will presumably make is that the 45-year-old is technically in the stands and not on the sideline, even if the empty stadium effectively allows him to bark commands out to his players.
His latest ban comes only two months after he was banned from the matchday touchline for six weeks after facing the charge of disrespecting a match official following the September 10 La Rochelle win at Lyon.
Despite his bans, O’Gara’s time at La Rochelle has been remarkably successful. The Cork native took over as head coach of La Rochelle in 2019, after serving as an assistant coach with the team for two seasons.
Since becoming head coach, O’Gara has led La Rochelle to a number of impressive victories. In his first season as head coach, La Rochelle finished fifth in the Top 14 and reached the semi-finals of the Heineken Champions Cup. He went one better in 2022, winning the tournament by defeating Leinster. The team has continued to perform well under O’Gara’s leadership and they currently sit in fourth place in the Top 14.
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