Due to “refereeing decisions and rugby reasons,” France was defeated by the Springboks in the Rugby World Cup.

Referee Ben O’Keeffe said he “was not happy with his performance” during the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal, according to France head coach Fabien Galthie.

The eventual victors, South Africa, eliminated the tournament’s hosts, Les Bleus, in the round of eight.

The Springboks defeated the French 29–28 to go to the semi-finals, leaving them completely stunned.

Six Nations’ challenges

Their early Six Nations performances appeared to be impacted by the disappointment, as they suffered a crushing defeat at home against Ireland.

After that, they narrowly defeated Scotland at Murrayfield before coming dangerously close to losing to Italy in their third-round match.

Galthie, who seems to be having trouble moving over his World Cup annoyance, discussed O’Keeffe’s performance in the quarterfinals during his Six Nations debrief.

“Both the officiating calls and rugby-related factors contributed to our quarterfinal loss. During a recent meeting at World Rugby, we also discussed it with Ben O’Keeffe,” he told reporters.

“We accept the decision as a necessary component of the game. Never will you witness me respond angrily to a refereeing call. But we may talk about it icily.

I thus got the chance to talk with Ben O’Keeffe in a World Rugby committee. During the meeting, there was a conversation regarding the coaches’ conduct.

“I took the floor and stated that we needed to treat the referees with respect since we had a big responsibility to play as educators. This is essential.

“I informed him that dubious choices had had a significant effect on my guys. Everyone was in agreement that certain choices weren’t the best ones. He, too, was not at all pleased with his performance.

Discussion of choices

When games are decided by the slimmest of margins, referee calls will almost always be contested.

Recently, France has triumphed against Scotland and England thanks to close calls made at the end of games.

Though probably not as much as Kwagga Smith’s arms, those occurrences drew loud criticism in the aftermath, with Galthie still expressing annoyance at the Springboks back-rower’s penalty call.

“Kwagga Smith turned over a ball with his elbows on the ground, giving the Springboks three points, for example,” he stated.

“Today, we want to rely on the rule-making and regulation work done by these World Rugby bodies. We need to speak up and be heard.

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