RFU apologise to England v Wales referee over Eddie Jones’ post-match comments

RFU apologise to England v Wales referee over Eddie Jones’ post-match comments

The Rugby Football Union has apologised to referee Ben O’Keeffe  for comments made by England head coach Eddie Jones after the Guinness Six Nations victory over Wales.

In a post-match interview following the 33-30 win at Twickenham on Saturday, Jones said: “At the end we were 13 against 16 and that’s hard.”

The comments were made in reference to the decision which saw centre Manu Tuilagi sent off for a dangerous tackle late on in the match.

RFU chief executive officer Bill Sweeney has now warned the England head coach similar views in the future will not be tolerated.

He said: “The RFU does not condone comments that undermine the integrity of match officials, who are central to the sport and its values.

“We have discussed with England head coach Eddie Jones the nature of the comments he made to the media in the immediate aftermath of a dramatic finish to the England versus Wales Guinness Six Nations match on Saturday, and have made it clear that such comments are not in line with the values of the sport or the RFU.”

Sweeney added Jones and the RFU have proposed a discussion forum with World Rugby.

“Eddie and the RFU regret any implication that Ben O’Keeffe was biased in his decision making,” Sweeney said.

Referee Ben O’Keeffe, left, showed Manu Tuilagi a red card on Saturday for a shoulder-led challenge to the head of George North
Referee Ben O’Keeffe, left, showed Manu Tuilagi a red card on Saturday for a shoulder-led challenge to the head of George North (David Davies/PA)

“In the meantime, Eddie Jones and the RFU have proposed a high level discussion forum with World Rugby to help achieve greater general alignment between coaches and match officials.

“All parties are satisfied the matter has been dealt with appropriately, are confident that further action would be taken should such a situation occur in the future, and consider the matter to be closed.”

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