It's the final hurdle to the Rugby World Cup grand final! The NZ Herald's Chereè Kinnear and Liam Napier unpack selection changes for the All Blacks and what to expect from a semifinals clash against Argentina. Video / NZ Herald / SNTV
The All Blacks captain and coach stand by the chirpy Rieko Ioane after footage emerged of Johnny Sexton blowing up at the centre after the quarter-final last weekend.
The reason was not picked up by the television broadcast, but the Irish Times reported that Ioane was celebrating in the directionof the Irish supporters in a taunting fashion.
“Ioane, in a classless gesture, put his finger to his lips while looking at the Irish crowd, and then felt compelled to bid farewell to Sexton,” rugby writer Gerry Thornley wrote from Stade de France.
What was picked up by eagle-lensed Getty Images photographer Hannah Peters was Ioane holding a hand to his ear and a dejected Sexton just metres away.
All Blacks captain Sam Cane thought Ioane had done nothing wrong, saying it was “a little bit” of different players and personalities coming out.
“So, yeah, when you are out there, I don’t think it matters what level of sport, there is always people who have different tactics and their emotions can run high and words are said. It is always just left out there.”
All Blacks centre Rieko Ioane celebrates victory at full-time. Photo / Getty Images
All Blacks coach Ian Foster defended Ioane, saying it was “the nature of the game”.
“Look, it happens on a rugby park, it happens on most sporting parks when tensions are high and there is a lot at stake. Players from both teams, and all teams, occasionally want to say a few words to each other. And that is the nature of the game.”
Dupont thought O’Keeffe made far too many mistakes, saying: “There’s a lot of frustration and disappointment. If we look again at some of the decisions maybe there will be even more. I don’t want to sound like a bitter person who complains about the refereeing, but I’m not sure the refereeing was at the highest level tonight.”
Foster weighed in, adding: “And unfortunately, recently, it has also included players saying a few things to referees. Is it right for the game? Don’t know. It has always been there. It is highly competitive and you don’t hear a lot of players complain about it.”
The All Blacks squad for the Argentina semifinal has been selected, with Foster opting to bring back in winger Mark Tele’a after he was cut from the match-day 23 last week for disciplinary reasons.
“He has done his time,” coach Ian Foster said. “He made a mistake and accepted what happened but you don’t linger in that space. We have got faith in him and think he is in a good place to play this game.”
All Blacks team
1. Ethan de Groot, 2. Codie Taylor 3. Tyrel Lomax, 4. Samuel Whitelock, 5. Scott Barrett, 6. Shannon Frizell, 7. Sam Cane (c), 8. Ardie Savea, 9. Aaron Smith, 10. Richie Mo’unga, 11. Mark Tele’a, 12. Jordie Barrett, 13. Rieko Ioane, 14. Will Jordan, 15. Beauden Barrett.
Samuel Whitelock in for Brodie Retallick and Mark Tele’a in for Leicester Fainga’anuku. On the bench, Samisoni Taukei’aho is in for Dane Coles. Finlay Christie again over Cam Roigard.
Luke Kirkness is an Online Sports Editor for the NZ Herald. He previously covered consumer affairs for the Herald and was an assistant news director in the Bay of Plenty. He won Student Journalist of the Year in 2019.
