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Lions Tour debacle: 'One person in particular has told us over and over again that the decision was right'

By Online Editors
Warren Gatland with Steve Hansen. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

Steve Hansen has spoken out about the referee mistake that may have cost the All Blacks a chance at a series victory over the British and Irish Lions in 2017, saying he is still “annoyed” that World Rugby never apologised.

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In the 78th minute of the thrilling third test, with the series tied at one a piece and the match deadlocked at 15-15, the All Blacks were handed a penalty close to the posts only for referee Romain Poite to reverse the original decision to an accidental offside.

The penalty was initially awarded for an offside against Lions hooker Ken Owens, but Poite was persuaded to review the call with the TMO – seemingly without any evidence to do so – which ultimately changed the decision.

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The match would end up fizzling out into a draw, with the series also frustratingly shared between the two sides.

Hansen – who stepped aside as All Blacks coach last year after 16 years with the team – has been relatively muted about the controversy over the past few years, but in an interview with ex-Black Cap and cricket commentator Ian Smith, he admitted that he is still frustrated with how World Rugby handled the incident.

“I have always understood that the referee will make mistakes. So he’s made a mistake and he’s got that wrong,” Hansen said on Sky Sport’s new series The Pod.

“The thing that annoyed me most about that incident, and still does to this day, is that we haven’t had an apology from World Rugby.

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“They’ve told us … well one person in particular has told us over and over again that the decision was right. Yet we all know … everybody in the world knows it’s not.

“We’ve had conversations [with Romain] and we just said, ‘move on, Romain, you can’t change it, it’s not your problem’.”

Hansen said all he wanted from World Rugby was an apology, which he believes would’ve helped his side move on from the frustrating incident.

“All we wanted was for the head of the rugby referees to say, ‘look, sorry we’ve got that wrong’. And then you can turn around and say to the players, ‘OK boys, the decision was wrong, but we’ve just got to cop it’.”

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The drawn series still comes up in rugby circles, with Lions coach Warren Gatland recently floating the idea of a fourth match “decider” ahead of the Lions’ next tour to South Africa next year.

“I’ve spoken to Mark Robinson about a warm-up game for the Lions and he was potentially talking about the New Zealand Maoris,” he said.

“But is it something that the All Blacks go up there for? A decider before we go off to South Africa at the end of June next year.

“Potentially it’s an opportunity to make £4 million or £5 million from a game like that and put some money back into the coffers that we’re going to need.”

Hansen said he supported the idea, but disagreed with the notion of it being a “decider” given how different the teams would be.

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Trevor 1 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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