Referee of the quarter -final between the Blues and the Springboks, Ben O’Keeffe relayed on social networks sequences of a documentary on hell experienced by the referees during the Rugby World Cup.
Ben O’Keeffe has a bitter memory of the World Cup organized in France. Consequence of the popular vindictive which followed the quarter-final lost by the XV of France against South Africa and a lesser degree the semi-final between these same Springboks and England. A documentary broadcast on RugbyPass TV and entitled Whistleblowers, also lingered on the pangs suffered by the arbitral body throughout the competition.
The New Zealand referee, who is preparing to make his comeback on the lawns during the Six Nations tournament, did not hesitate to broadcast certain sequences on lnstagram, notably that concerning the shock between the troops of Fabien Galkié and South Africa. You can hear the comments of Antoine Dupont after the meeting.
“I am not sure that arbitration was at the level of the stake”had notably released the tricolor captain in front of the media, triggering a tsunami. For some observers, these declarations have indeed “Nourished aggressiveness” With regard to Ben O’Keeffe, who had to deal with an avalanche of insults and disparaging messages on social networks but also death threats.
The most hated person on earth
“Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional”wrote the Kiwi referee, philosopher, to accompany this extract from the documentary. He explains that he had the impression after the match lost by the Blues to be “The most hated person on earth”. “I think the consequences of this match were the most important that I have ever experienced”Can we hear him blow, adding: “” I know it will now follow me for the rest of my referee career. »»
However, he had made amends on the days following the meeting. “I know that we are never perfect as an arbitrators, we certainly make mistakes in the game”had conceded the New Zealander after the match, adding: “I’m sure everything is fine. We have done my debriefing and we will try to talk about it (with the French) and put things back on good rails. But I understand their feeling after a great match like this. This is obviously a very moving period. I’m just trying to respect this and give them time. »»
Following threats suffered by referees at the last World Cup, World Rugby recently announced that prosecution had been launched in several countries of the world. “” We were able to unmask and identify the abuse authors and take measures thanks to the police in many countriesexplained the general manager of World Rugby, Alan Gilpin. We hope that legal proceedings will send a clear message indicating that such a behavior is not tolerated and that even if a person hides behind a pseudonym on a social network, it will be identified and may be charged. »»
