Following yet another tournament without silverware for France, manager Fabien Galthie has hit out at the refereeing of France's quarter-final loss against South Africa, claiming that Ben O'Keeffe wasn't happy with his refereeing performance on the day and that 'refereeing decisions' impacted the result.
Galthie, who took up the position as French head coach in 2019, has come under increasing pressure after his side followed up their disappointing quarter-final exit at the World Cup with an underwhelming third-place finish in this year's Six Nations.
France entered the 2023 World Cup not only as hosts but as one of the competition favourites, however, a nail-biting quarter-final between Les Bleus and eventual winners South Africa saw the French knocked out.
That game did not come without controversy, as the performance of referee Ben O'Keeffe came under fierce scrutiny from French fans, players, and former match officials. World Rugby ultimately admitted to five major errors in the game, which France lost by a single point.
While the Six Nations offered Fabien Galthie a good chance to bounce back, the reality was far from it with France's underwhelming third-place finish evidence of a World Cup hangover that is still lingering in the camp.
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In saying all that, Galthie has presided over a period of relative success for the French that has seen them win a Six Nations Grand Slam and continuously maintain their place as one of the top rugby sides in the world. However, with the lack of silverware becoming apparent Galthie has gone back to hit out at how France's quarter-final v South Africa was officiated.
8 September 2023; France head coach Fabien Galthié before the 2023 Rugby World Cup Pool A match between France and New Zealand at the Stade de France in Paris, France. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile
Fabien Galthie hits out at World Cup refereeing
Speaking at a Six Nations debrief, French coach Galthie hit out at Ben O'Keeffe's officiating of that infamous quarter-final, claiming his 'players had been strongly impacted by questionable decisions'.
Galthie revealed that he had spoken with O'Keeffe since that quarter-final, and that the New Zealander had admitted he was unhappy with how he had reffed the game:
We lost the quarter-final for rugby reasons but also for refereeing decisions.
We spoke about it with Ben O'Keeffe during a recent meeting at World Rugby, in a World Rugby committee, I therefore had the opportunity to speak with Ben O'Keeffe. At one point in the meeting there was a discussion about the behavior of the selectors. I took the floor and said that we had a major role as educators and that we must behave with respect towards the referees. This is fundamental.
I told him that my players had been strongly impacted by questionable decisions. Everyone agreed on the fact that some decisions weren't the right ones. He wasn't at all happy with his performance either.
While the comments are unsurprising, plenty of people have been left disappointed, suggesting that the blaming or targeting of referees is not in the spirit of the sport.
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