Sam Cane has revealed his anguish at being sent off in New Zealand’s Rugby World Cup final defeat, saying he will have to ‘live with’ the red card ‘forever’.
The All Blacks captain was set to the bunker for his high tackle on Jessie Kriel 29 minutes in and that yellow card was upgraded to a red after 34 minutes.
His shoulder had hit Kriel’s head and after English referee Wayne Barnes had dismissed the player, it was ruled highly dangerous after a review by the ‘Bunker’.
It was the first-ever red card on rugby’s grandest stage and New Zealand eventually lost 11-12 to South Africa after playing most of the game with 14 men.
Cane said: ‘I am not here to discuss whether it was the right or wrong decision. It can’t be changed. Unfortunately it is something I am going to have to live with forever.
All Blacks captain Sam Cane was sent off in the first half against South Africa for a high tackle
His challenge on Jesse Kriel was deemed to be highly dangerous by the bunker review officer
He had initially been given a yellow card but his red made him the first male player to ever receive one in a Rugby World Cup final
‘We have been here for two months now and anything around the head has ramifications.
‘At the time I wasn’t even aware, it caught me off guard that he stepped back.
‘[There’s] So much hurt right now. It’s actually hard to find the words to explain it. It’s hard because you are feeling so much hurt but at the same time you are so proud of the group in how they fought back.’
The All Blacks may have thought they were safe after Shannon Frizzell escaped an upgrade for his earlier challenge on Bongi Mbonambi.
Frizzell looked to make contact with the 32-year-old’s neck and drag the South African away before he landed awkwardly on the back of his leg after an early ruck, but his yellow was not upgraded after a TMO review.
But the All Blacks didn’t allow Cane’s sending-off to dictate the game to them as New Zealand were well in it.
They controlled big chunks of the second half and missed two opportunities to take the lead late on.
The Springboks secured their second World Cup in a row with New Zealand No 10 Richie Mo’unga missing the conversion for Beauden Barrett’s try earlier in the game.
It was heartache for the All Blacks at full-time, with New Zealand’s players sinking to their haunches after giving everything on the field
South Africa won 12-11 at the Stade de France to retain their World Cup trophy after a close tie
Siya Kolisi, South Africa’s captain, could have been sent off himself after his high tackle on New Zealand forward Ardie Savea.
Head coach Ian Foster spoke out on Cane’s dismissal in that context, indicating that there might be a few ‘issues’ that rugby needs to ‘sort out’.
He said: ‘We will sort that out, it’s gut-wrenching for him and frustrating for us. The game has got a few issues it has got to sort out.
‘That’s not sour grapes. There were two similar incidents and one was a red, one was a yellow.’