Never-before-seen Bledisloe Cup footage shows Bernard Foley SNUBBING the ref in act Wallabies great says could have led official to make shocking call that cost Australia the game
- Wallabies fly-half Bernard Foley can be seen ignoring referee Mathieu Raynal
- Unfolded before Raynal gifted the All Blacks victory in first Bledisloe Cup test
- Ex-Wallaby Will Genia said the new vision was ‘huge’, Foley could be to blame
- New Zealand won test 39-37 in Melbourne with try out wide from Jordie Barrett
- Seconds earlier, Foley was penalised for taking too long to kick ball into touch
New footage from the first Bledisloe Cup test match has shown Wallabies fly-half Bernard Foley ignoring referee Mathieu Raynal in the lead up to the questionable time-wasting decision which handed the All Blacks victory.
Stan Sport played the footage on Thursday on the panel show Rugby Heaven, where the French whistle-blower can clearly be seen telling Foley to not kick a conversion.
‘Wait please. You have to wait. You have to wait!’ Raynal yelled at Foley as he was lining up the kick.
It is understood Raynal at the time was seeking clarification from the television match official (TMO) that there wasn’t a forward pass in the lead up to a Wallabies try.
Foley somewhat arrogantly piloted the ball between the posts regardless – and former Australian scrum-half Will Genia believes the conduct of the no.10 at Marvel Stadium would have infuriated Raynal.
New footage from the first Bledisloe Cup test match has shown Wallabies fly-half Bernard Foley ignoring referee Mathieu Raynal in the lead up to the questionable time-wasting decision which handed the All Blacks victory
‘That footage is huge because for me personally, having been out there on the field with referees and your interactions with them, that certainly sticks in his psyche moving forward,’ Genia said.
‘It’s obviously Bernard kicking the goal and Bernard at the end, taking the penalty to kick it out into touch. For me it’s definitely something that’s stuck in his mind.
‘The funny thing about it is he asks him to wait but then still allows the goal kick to go ahead and allows the conversion to be successful, when he had all the rights to be able to pull that back.’
Wallabies great Tim Horan was equally surprised Raynal allowing Foley’s conversion to stand given he was consulting with the TMO official Ben Whitehouse.
‘He could have brought it back, I think he was waiting for the TMO to see whether it was a forward pass to (Andrew) Kellaway or not,’ Horan said.
‘Bernard Foley knew he was probably going to go to the TMO and that’s why he kicked it quickly. But Raynal had the chance to bring him back and then just played on.
‘So I’m not sure whether it played on his mind in the last 90 seconds or not but it could have done.’
Former Wallabies scrum-half Will Genia described the new vision as ‘huge’ and suggested Foley’s conduct may have got under the referee’s skin
Former Wallaby Adam Ashley Cooper was perplexed by the crucial on-field call from Raynal which saw New Zealand steal a 39-37 win at the death
In dramatic scenes, Raynal punished Foley for time wasting late in the contest before handing a crucial scrum feed to the All Blacks near the Wallabies try-line.
Seconds later New Zealand won the match 39-37 after Jordie Barrett scored in the corner.
The All Blacks have already claimed the Bledisloe Cup, needing to win just one of two tests in the Rugby Championship.
They are also virtually unbeatable at Eden Park in Auckland, having last been beaten by the Wallabies at the iconic sporting venue way back in 1986.
Australia also haven’t won on New Zealand soil since 2001 and face an uphill task in the second test from 5pm on Saturday (AEST).
