Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has reacted furiously to accusations he called the referee a cheat after a dispiriting 30-6 Test defeat to England at Twickenham.
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika Photo: Photosport
The loss, to Eddie Jones's team, was Australia's biggest margin of defeat against their rivals.
However, it did not tell the full story of the match with the tourists trailing 13-6 with 10 minutes remaining and then having a Marika Koroibete try controversially ruled out after Stephen Moore was deemed to have prevented Chris Robshaw making a tackle.
Three five-pointers in the last seven minutes from Jonathan Joseph, Jonny May and Danny Care then gave the scoreline some extra gloss but failed to mask the fact that Cheika's side have now lost their past five matches to England.
There were also first-half yellow cards brandished to skipper Michael Hooper, who also had a try chalked off, and Kurtley Beale.
TV footage appeared to show an incensed Cheika mouth "f............ cheats" from the coaching box after Hooper's try was disallowed for offside by the television match official (TMO).
When questioned by BeIN SPORTS about the incident, an angry Cheika stormed out of the post-match interview.
"Is that really what it's come to?" Cheika said before walking away.
"I'm trying to get an interview without getting stuck into that and you want to try to keep making it (about that).
"Maybe I could've said something if that's the new thing, yeah maybe I did swear. It happens sometimes in life, I'm sure you have as well, have you?
"Maybe the TV camera wasn't on you at the time?
England centre Jonathan Joseph. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Hooper's sin-binning for repeated offside, by rookie New Zealand referee Ben O'Keeffe, was the eighth time he's been sent to the touchline -- the most by any player in history.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, a more measured Cheika played down an exchange of words with England supporters as he made his way to the sideline.
"There are plenty of fans giving me a gob full, I can assure you," he said.
"And it's not nice, not pleasant. But that is the way it goes, the way it happens.
"I know when I walk down the stairs that I'm going to cop abuse but that's the way she rolls."
In a match played in freezing cold, rainy conditions, Hooper looked to have scored the opening try midway through the first period.
However, he was ruled offside by the TMO after Koiribete scuffed the ball ahead for him to dive onto.
"I thought I worked back, hands in the air and Marika, who was onside kicked the ball, and put me onside," Hooper said.
The Wallabies' frustration was compounded after the TMO ruled in favour of an Elliot Daly try after halftime.
The score stemmed from Wallabies centre Tevita Kuridrani spilling the ball from a Samu Kerevi offload with the England line at his mercy.
Halfback Ben Youngs booted the ball down the field looking for touch.
But despite footage appearing to show the point of the ball grazed the line, Daly's opportunistic try was awarded after he nipped in front of Beale and race to the line.
"I don't know, I am not ranking them, it's not the academy awards," Cheika said when asked which decision that went against his side angered him most.
Meanwhile, in Cardiff, a second-string Wales team held on for a narrow 13-6 win over Georgia with stout defence denying the eastern European country a first win over a top tier rugby- playing nation in a controversial finish at the Principality Stadium.
There was a single try from Wales winger Hallam Amos in a first international between the two countries that will be seen as a morale triumph for Georgia, who have been lobbying for a place in the Six Nations Championship.
Wales, who made 14 changes to the team that lost 29-21 to Australia last weekend, crossed the Georgia line three times but only Amos's 20th-minute effort was awarded in a match that only livened up near the end as Georgia pushed for an upset result.
Wales substitute Tomas Harris was sin-binned in the final minute, handing Georgia a penalty yards from the try line.
The hosts claimed they did not have any more fit props to come on, even though Leon Brown and Nicky Smith were still standing on the sideline encouraging their teammates after being replaced, and so the referee ordered an uncontested scrum which denied the visitors an opportunity for a pushover try.
Georgia instead kicked for a lineout, then went through 11 phases as they attacked the Welsh line before being penalised for not releasing the ball and losing their chance for a draw.
The first international between the two countries will still be seen as a morale triumph for Georgia, who have been lobbying for a place in the Six Nations Championship.
In Florence, Argentina have scored two tries in the last 10 minutes to claim a 31-15 win over Italy in a see-saw encounter.
The lead changed nine times and Italy led 15-14 on the hour before Argentina broke loose in the last 20 minutes with converted tries by Marcos Kremer and Joaquin Tuculet for only their second win this year.
In Bucharest, hosts Romania pulled off an upset with their 17-13 come-from-behind win over Samoa.
- Reuters
