England ref accused of ‘unconscious bias’ as TMO ignores Scotland-Ireland brawl
Rugby World Cup: Borthwick reviews England's win over Samoa
Rugby World Cup stars are now looking ahead to the quarter-finals in France where they will go a step closer to becoming world champions. England passed a tough test against Samoa on Saturday evening as Steve Borthwick’s side prepare for a likely last-eight clash against Fiji.
England were already through to the knockout phase but faced Samoa in their final pool match. Danny Care’s late kick ensured it was an unbeaten set of group fixtures for the Lions, although this was a below-par performance against the Pacific Islanders.
There was also a big victory for Ireland against Scotland, which put them through to the quarters at the expense of the Scots. You can follow all the latest updates with Express Sport’s LIVE blog, below.
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Refs accused of ‘unconscious bias
Samoa coach Seilala Mapusua accused Rugby World Cup referees of ‘unconscious bias’ against the smaller nations.
Responding directly to a question about the number of penalties in the game – Samoa penalised 14 times to England’s nine – he suggested that referees have an ‘unconscious bias’.
He also refuted claims that his stars had to get used to the decisions of ‘elite’ referees.
Mapusua said: “The guys in the blue jerseys play in the same tournaments as the guys in the white jerseys.
“Maybe referees need more time with referees. Do referees have an unconscious bias when tier two sides play tier one sides? A lot of the guys are [club] team-mates.
“I believe there is [unconscious bias]. I believe there has been in the past. I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault; it’s what I’ve seen in our game for I don’t know how many years; since I was playing.”
TMO ignores Scotland-Ireland shove
The television match official did not intervene during a brawl that saw Pierre Schoeman shove Ireland’s Dan Sheehan over the advertising hoardings.
Ollie Smith had snidely tripped Johnny Sexton as he made his way past him, with Sexton not reacting kindly to the underhand tactic.
The Scotland star rose from his feet and prompted a mass brawl between the two players.
Schoeman was then seen shoving Sheehan over the advertising boards in what could have been extremely dangerous.
However, there was no punishment for Schoeman despite his aggressive action.
England overcome Samoa – just
An underwhelming England performance saw them just about edge past Samoa in an 18-17 triumph.
Danny Care’s late kick delivered a victory for the unbeaten Lions as they progress to the quarter-final.
Steve Borthwick’s side were below-par against the Pacific Islanders and will need to be much better in the last-eight.
It is likely that they will play Fiji in the next round.
Welcome
Hello and welcome to Express Sport’s live coverage of Sunday’s Rugby World Cup news.
Stay tuned for all the latest developments as the fallout from Saturday’s matches continues.
We’ll also be looking ahead to the quarter-finals.
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