The Silver Fern

    • Register
    • Login
    • Search
    • Categories
    • Recent
    • Users
    • Tipping
    • Thread Topics
    • Highlights
    • Team Sheets
    • NPC Results
    • Upvote Leaderboard
        • TSF
        • Home Page
        • Browse Posts
        • Tipping
        • Tipping Home
        • Submit Your Tips
        • Current Tips
          Rugby Info
        • Team Sheets
        • Highlights
        • Rugby Results
        • AB Results
        • SR Results
        • NPC Results
          Forum Links
        • Leaderboard
        • Popular Topics
        • Topic Tags

    Laporte

    Sports Talk
    18
    45
    486
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as topic
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
    • sparky
      sparky last edited by

      Dodgy geezer.

      Suspended sentence for French rugby chief Laporte

      Suspended sentence for French rugby chief Laporte

      French rugby chief Bernard Laporte is given a two-year suspended prison sentence and a 75,000 euro (£64,000) fine for corruption, nine months before the country hosts the World Cup.

      JC 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • JC
        JC @sparky last edited by

        @sparky Awesome to see the All Blacks’ jersey sponsor name checked in an article about corruption in rugby. Just the kind of publicity we need.

        antipodean 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • antipodean
          antipodean @JC last edited by

          @JC we should've stuck with that paragon of virtue AIG.

          JC 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
          • JC
            JC @antipodean last edited by

            @antipodean Well at least with AIG you never had to worry about corruption. They do all their evil right out in the open.

            Machpants 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
            • Machpants
              Machpants @JC last edited by

              @JC said in Laporte:

              @antipodean Well at least with AIG you never had to worry about corruption. They do all their evil right out in the open.

              Um, have a Google of AIG corruption probe. There's a ton

              mariner4life JC 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • mariner4life
                mariner4life @Machpants last edited by

                @Machpants said in Laporte:

                @JC said in Laporte:

                @antipodean Well at least with AIG you never had to worry about corruption. They do all their evil right out in the open.

                Um, have a Google of AIG corruption probe. There's a ton

                ah, i think you may have misread the tone of his post

                Machpants 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 7
                • Machpants
                  Machpants @mariner4life last edited by Machpants

                  @mariner4life said in Laporte:

                  @Machpants said in Laporte:

                  @JC said in Laporte:

                  @antipodean Well at least with AIG you never had to worry about corruption. They do all their evil right out in the open.

                  Um, have a Google of AIG corruption probe. There's a ton

                  ah, i think you may have misread the tone of his post

                  I don't think so, not only is their evil upfront, but they also try to hide some of it. So at least Altrad pretends to be good, an improvement, no?

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • Windows97
                    Windows97 last edited by

                    I'm sure people will say they're shocked and appalled - as they should.

                    Whilst all happily heading off the the RWC in France like nothing ever happened...

                    mariner4life booboo 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • mariner4life
                      mariner4life @Windows97 last edited by

                      @Windows97 said in Laporte:

                      Whilst all happily heading off the the RWC in France like nothing ever happened...

                      because, not even deep down, but like, just below a thin surface

                      people don't really give a shit

                      ooohh, rich powerful person used his power for personal gain. more news at 6

                      it's like the Qatar world cup being the fucking worst thing ever in the history of the world. while everyone watches.

                      And you know what? people shouldn't care. not really. what can any of us really do about it? fucking nothing. Except have the double whammy of removing fun things from out lives, AND adding misery to your lives. Shrug your shoulders and move on.

                      Windows97 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 5
                      • Windows97
                        Windows97 @mariner4life last edited by

                        @mariner4life said in Laporte:
                        what can any of us really do about it? fucking nothing. Except have the double whammy of removing fun things from out lives, AND adding misery to your lives. Shrug your shoulders and move on.

                        Oh that's so untrue!! I can virtue signal on social media, maybe even change my facebook profile thingy whatever to some prefabricated thing someone else came up with. And all our problems will be solved.

                        Rancid Schnitzel 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                        • Rancid Schnitzel
                          Rancid Schnitzel @Windows97 last edited by

                          @Windows97 said in Laporte:

                          @mariner4life said in Laporte:
                          what can any of us really do about it? fucking nothing. Except have the double whammy of removing fun things from out lives, AND adding misery to your lives. Shrug your shoulders and move on.

                          Oh that's so untrue!! I can virtue signal on social media, maybe even change my facebook profile thingy whatever to some prefabricated thing someone else came up with. And all our problems will be solved.

                          Or a God-bothering Tongan people can pile into.

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • JC
                            JC @Machpants last edited by

                            @Machpants I think we know that. The joke was that with AIG if you were focussing on corruption you were probably missing the bigger picture, which is that they are a dumpster fire of an organisation.

                            Maybe I need to start using irony flags if such a thing exists.

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                            • Windows97
                              Windows97 last edited by Windows97

                              I mean with the pall of corruption hanging over the RWC in France one could move it somewhere else I suppose.

                              But such actions would result in an awful lot of money being hurt and in this intellectual, enlightened age of rights and freedoms nothing could be worse than that.

                              *Disclaimer - this post comes with JC's irony flag.

                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • Crucial
                                Crucial last edited by

                                https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/130759418/new-zealand-rugby-seeks-urgent-altrad-meetings-after-all-blacks-black-ferns-shirt-sponsor-found-guilty-of-corruption

                                taniwharugby 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • No Quarter
                                  No Quarter last edited by

                                  Fucking Laporte. Time to re-visit 2007 me thinks. Henry suspected match fixing and urged NZR to ask for an investigation but they never did. The most lopsided refereeing performance of all time, like the Donald Bradman of lopsided refereeing performances with just 2 penalties awarded to the team bitch slapping their opponents all over the park while they cheat at every second ruck trying to hold on, benefited this rich and now confirmed corrupt assholes team.

                                  JC Rancid Schnitzel 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                  • booboo
                                    booboo @Windows97 last edited by

                                    @Windows97 said in Laporte:

                                    I'm sure people will say they're shocked and appalled - as they should.

                                    Whilst all happily heading off the the RWC in France like nothing ever happened...

                                    Appalled? Yes
                                    Shocked? Meh

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                    • JC
                                      JC @No Quarter last edited by

                                      @No-Quarter You reckon he got Suzie to deliver the envelope of cash?

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • taniwharugby
                                        taniwharugby @Crucial last edited by

                                        @Crucial so this comment:

                                        “We have been in discussions on the possibility of this outcome for some time,” NZ Rugby said in a statement.

                                        So I realise negotiations between NZR & Altrad would have started well before the change from AIG to Altrad last year, but how long would they (Altrad) have known about this, would NZR have known when in negotiations? Cos Altrad being handed a suspended sentence now, then this has been going on for some time, surely?

                                        Crucial 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • Rancid Schnitzel
                                          Rancid Schnitzel @No Quarter last edited by

                                          @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                          Fucking Laporte. Time to re-visit 2007 me thinks. Henry suspected match fixing and urged NZR to ask for an investigation but they never did. The most lopsided refereeing performance of all time, like the Donald Bradman of lopsided refereeing performances with just 2 penalties awarded to the team bitch slapping their opponents all over the park while they cheat at every second ruck trying to hold on, benefited this rich and now confirmed corrupt assholes team.

                                          As much as I want to agree with this and for all his many faults, Barnes does appear to have some integrity and I cannot imagine him having been on the take. It was just sheer incompetence and had it been against certain other countries his international reffing days probably would have been numbered.

                                          No Quarter 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                                          • Crucial
                                            Crucial @taniwharugby last edited by

                                            @taniwharugby said in Laporte:

                                            @Crucial so this comment:

                                            “We have been in discussions on the possibility of this outcome for some time,” NZ Rugby said in a statement.

                                            So I realise negotiations between NZR & Altrad would have started well before the change from AIG to Altrad last year, but how long would they (Altrad) have known about this, would NZR have known when in negotiations? Cos Altrad being handed a suspended sentence now, then this has been going on for some time, surely?

                                            Would have had to have been part of full disclosure. Even though they are providing money, NZR are providing the product and would do full due diligence on anyone that wanted to connect.

                                            taniwharugby 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                            • No Quarter
                                              No Quarter @Rancid Schnitzel last edited by

                                              @Rancid-Schnitzel said in Laporte:

                                              @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                              Fucking Laporte. Time to re-visit 2007 me thinks. Henry suspected match fixing and urged NZR to ask for an investigation but they never did. The most lopsided refereeing performance of all time, like the Donald Bradman of lopsided refereeing performances with just 2 penalties awarded to the team bitch slapping their opponents all over the park while they cheat at every second ruck trying to hold on, benefited this rich and now confirmed corrupt assholes team.

                                              As much as I want to agree with this and for all his many faults, Barnes does appear to have some integrity and I cannot imagine him having been on the take. It was just sheer incompetence and had it been against certain other countries his international reffing days probably would have been numbered.

                                              I dunno man, a young ref that made his debut the year before inexplicably given a huge match and then being pressured by powerful and extremely rich people in the game to favour a home team at a RWC is not beyond the realms of possibility. In fact when you look at the way it was reffed, it looks quite likely. It's just such an aberration that "incompetence" doesn't do enough to explain it for me. I don't know if we'll ever really find out what happened there. I think other sports would have definitely launched an investigation, but rugby has this "don't question the ref" mentality (or at least did back then) which meant we just decided to take it on the nose instead.

                                              Rancid Schnitzel antipodean 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                              • taniwharugby
                                                taniwharugby @Crucial last edited by

                                                @Crucial well yeah thats what I was alluding to, you'd expect NZR had done thier due diligence, were aware this was a likely outcome, and therefore in the negotiations, determined a response if this eventuated.

                                                Crucial 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                • Crucial
                                                  Crucial @taniwharugby last edited by

                                                  @taniwharugby said in Laporte:

                                                  @Crucial well yeah thats what I was alluding to, you'd expect NZR had done thier due diligence, were aware this was a likely outcome, and therefore in the negotiations, determined a response if this eventuated.

                                                  Don't forget that they are dealing with Frogs. I don't mean that as flippant, they have their own ways of working and dealing with things just as dealing with, say, a Chinese company would.
                                                  I worked for a multinational roll out across US, Japanese and French owned companies (think car manufacturers/brands) and by far the most difficult arm to deal with was the French.
                                                  NZR would have had this as a major reputational risk and would have worked through treatments for it turning into an issue..

                                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                  • mariner4life
                                                    mariner4life last edited by

                                                    @No-Quarter is on a watch list lads. This is how it starts.

                                                    He's like four steps from sovereign citizenry

                                                    (i might need to be added to said list because what he says is making a lot of sense)

                                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 4
                                                    • Crucial
                                                      Crucial last edited by

                                                      It is a huge leap to think that anyone would waste money on trying to guarantee an outcome in a game like that. Who could predict a forward pass leading to a try?
                                                      Barnes was a new patsy but even then his appointment could have gone either way as far as a result goes.
                                                      If there is any hint of a place to go looking then maybe the ARs would be the place to spend money. They can help with the non calls and get to mark lineout positions.
                                                      Not casting aspersions at the individuals (Kaplan and Spreadbury?) just saying that would be the area you could look to gain influence. Would be a frivolous spend though.

                                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                      • No Quarter
                                                        No Quarter last edited by

                                                        @Crucial you can't guarantee a result, but you can heavily favour one team and strongly influence the outcome. From memory (this was in Henry's book) he wanted the whole refereeing team investigated and produced damning video and statistical evidence of just how bad it was, e.g. the French could have been penalised up to 40 times but were only pinged twice, and I think not at all in the last 60 odd minutes which is absolutely bananas given they defended for most of the game.

                                                        @mariner4life I try to keep my conspiracies limited to sport, given how corrupt governments around the world are it'd be easy to fall down some giant rabbit holes there.

                                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                        • No Quarter
                                                          No Quarter last edited by

                                                          Here we go - stuff article from 2012. Damning stuff

                                                          https://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/latest-edition/7370102/Henry-suspected-match-fixing-after-07-loss

                                                          All Blacks coach Graham Henry was so stunned by the lopsided penalty count in the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to France he urged the New Zealand Rugby Union to call for an investigation into referee Wayne Barnes' performance.

                                                          In his biography, 'Graham Henry Final Word', by veteran author Bob Howitt, Henry reveals he briefly contemplated match-fixing as the only logical explanation for the All Blacks' upset 20-18 loss.

                                                          He analysed the game on video for his report to the rugby union and found Barnes had awarded only two penalties to New Zealand during the game.

                                                          His gut feeling, according to his biography, was that the video "would confirm that referee Wayne Barnes and his touch judges, Jonathan Kaplan from South Africa and Tony Spreadbury from England, hadn't exactly covered themselves in glory at the Millennium Stadium, that they had missed an obvious forward pass when France scored its match-winning try - a pass so forward everyone in the stadium had witnessed it except the referee - and that Barnes had been pretty lenient on the French at the breakdowns, probably costing the All Blacks the game".

                                                          His analysis was that France deserved to be penalised up to 40 times.

                                                          The video had three different angles and featured statistical breakdowns of lineouts, scrums, penalties, tackle counts, territory and possession. On those statistics, the All Blacks dominated. They had an overwhelming 73 per cent territorial advantage, winning 166 rucks to France's 42 and making only 73 tackles compared with France's 331.

                                                          A mind-boggled Henry was so stunned by his findings he told the rugby union it should "pressure the International Rugby Board to institute an inquiry".

                                                          He also said it was ''incomprehensible'' the IRB did not have strategies in place to investigate bizarre matches.

                                                          Howitt writes: "He knew if a comparable situation had occurred in other sports, it would be investigated. But there existed a blissful purity about rugby, or at least that's how everyone wanted to perceive it. It wasn't politically correct to even suggest the match officials might have favoured one team."

                                                          The rugby union chose not to push for an investigation.

                                                          Crucial MajorRage 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                          • Rancid Schnitzel
                                                            Rancid Schnitzel @No Quarter last edited by Rancid Schnitzel

                                                            @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                            @Rancid-Schnitzel said in Laporte:

                                                            @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                            Fucking Laporte. Time to re-visit 2007 me thinks. Henry suspected match fixing and urged NZR to ask for an investigation but they never did. The most lopsided refereeing performance of all time, like the Donald Bradman of lopsided refereeing performances with just 2 penalties awarded to the team bitch slapping their opponents all over the park while they cheat at every second ruck trying to hold on, benefited this rich and now confirmed corrupt assholes team.

                                                            As much as I want to agree with this and for all his many faults, Barnes does appear to have some integrity and I cannot imagine him having been on the take. It was just sheer incompetence and had it been against certain other countries his international reffing days probably would have been numbered.

                                                            I dunno man, a young ref that made his debut the year before inexplicably given a huge match and then being pressured by powerful and extremely rich people in the game to favour a home team at a RWC is not beyond the realms of possibility. In fact when you look at the way it was reffed, it looks quite likely. It's just such an aberration that "incompetence" doesn't do enough to explain it for me. I don't know if we'll ever really find out what happened there. I think other sports would have definitely launched an investigation, but rugby has this "don't question the ref" mentality (or at least did back then) which meant we just decided to take it on the nose instead.

                                                            In any other sport Barnes would probably never reffed a WC again. Or at least one involving NZ. Irrespective of that, it still infuriates me when I think of all the choker bullshit that followed.

                                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                            • Crucial
                                                              Crucial @No Quarter last edited by

                                                              @No-Quarter the dangers of statistics.

                                                              The fact that we were making all the play meant that almost all non decisions (swallowing the whistle) went against us.
                                                              Sometimes the most simple explanations are the best.
                                                              Also saying that everyone in the stadium except Barnes missed the forward pass is a stupid comment as he was one of the only peopl to not have a clear view.

                                                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                              • antipodean
                                                                antipodean @No Quarter last edited by

                                                                @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                                @Rancid-Schnitzel said in Laporte:

                                                                @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                                Fucking Laporte. Time to re-visit 2007 me thinks. Henry suspected match fixing and urged NZR to ask for an investigation but they never did. The most lopsided refereeing performance of all time, like the Donald Bradman of lopsided refereeing performances with just 2 penalties awarded to the team bitch slapping their opponents all over the park while they cheat at every second ruck trying to hold on, benefited this rich and now confirmed corrupt assholes team.

                                                                As much as I want to agree with this and for all his many faults, Barnes does appear to have some integrity and I cannot imagine him having been on the take. It was just sheer incompetence and had it been against certain other countries his international reffing days probably would have been numbered.

                                                                I dunno man, a young ref that made his debut the year before inexplicably given a huge match and then being pressured by powerful and extremely rich people in the game to favour a home team at a RWC is not beyond the realms of possibility. In fact when you look at the way it was reffed, it looks quite likely. It's just such an aberration that "incompetence" doesn't do enough to explain it for me. I don't know if we'll ever really find out what happened there. I think other sports would have definitely launched an investigation, but rugby has this "don't question the ref" mentality (or at least did back then) which meant we just decided to take it on the nose instead.

                                                                You can thank two parties for it:

                                                                1. The French for ending up on the wrong side of the draw.
                                                                2. A New Zealander for appointing Barnes to what should have been a game against a minnow, and then not addressing it.
                                                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                                • Dan54
                                                                  Dan54 last edited by

                                                                  Really we somehow got the loss in 2007 being brought up? FFS there was no corruption, (Barnes an inexperienced, young ref) made a mistake or 2 during the game, and ABs made more and lost the game.Nothing more or less, Henry actually later said he had at first thought there was something no right, but said after he calmed down he realised he was just to upset. Barnes says of the missed forward pass, andwondered at times if it was only forward pass missed during the WC.

                                                                  booboo Bones 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                                  • Billy Tell
                                                                    Billy Tell last edited by

                                                                    I heard that Wayne Barnes shot JFK from the grassy knoll.

                                                                    Crucial 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                                                                    • Crucial
                                                                      Crucial @Billy Tell last edited by

                                                                      @Billy-Tell said in Laporte:

                                                                      I heard that Wayne Barnes shot JFK from the grassy knoll.

                                                                      And was the inventor of the Covid Vaccination chip.

                                                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                                      • No Quarter
                                                                        No Quarter last edited by

                                                                        Sorry guys but this is the conspiracy hill I've chosen to die on, that game was a stitch up from start to finish. Laporte seemed like a shady motherfucker at the time and this has only solidified my position.

                                                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                                        • booboo
                                                                          booboo @Dan54 last edited by booboo

                                                                          @Dan54 said in Laporte:

                                                                          Really we somehow got the loss in 2007 being brought up? FFS there was no corruption, (Barnes an inexperienced, young ref) made a mistake or 2 during the game, and ABs made more and lost the game.Nothing more or less, Henry actually later said he had at first thought there was something no right, but said after he calmed down he realised he was just to upset. Barnes says of the missed forward pass, andwondered at times if it was only forward pass missed during the WC.

                                                                          1. Agree. But we're still not over Dallas and Deans.
                                                                          2. Righto.
                                                                          3. There were two in the same movement.
                                                                          taniwharugby Dan54 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                                          • taniwharugby
                                                                            taniwharugby @booboo last edited by

                                                                            @booboo you forgot the main point...THIS.IS.THE.FERN we can go from anywhere to anywhere with the faintest of connections

                                                                            No Quarter 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 6
                                                                            • Dan54
                                                                              Dan54 @booboo last edited by

                                                                              @booboo said in Laporte:

                                                                              @Dan54 said in Laporte:

                                                                              Really we somehow got the loss in 2007 being brought up? FFS there was no corruption, (Barnes an inexperienced, young ref) made a mistake or 2 during the game, and ABs made more and lost the game.Nothing more or less, Henry actually later said he had at first thought there was something no right, but said after he calmed down he realised he was just to upset. Barnes says of the missed forward pass, andwondered at times if it was only forward pass missed during the WC.

                                                                              1. Agree. But we're still not over Dallas and Deans.
                                                                              2. Righto.
                                                                              3. There were two in the same movement.

                                                                              😁 Fair enough too , I mean I should of stopped to think who was impacted!
                                                                              And as taniwha probaly rightly points out, we can go anywhere on Fern, what the heall was I thinking!😖

                                                                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                                              • No Quarter
                                                                                No Quarter @taniwharugby last edited by

                                                                                @taniwharugby said in Laporte:

                                                                                @booboo you forgot the main point...THIS.IS.THE.FERN we can go from anywhere to anywhere with the faintest of connections

                                                                                The name Laporte triggered a deep-seated trauma within me

                                                                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                                                • MajorRage
                                                                                  MajorRage @No Quarter last edited by

                                                                                  @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                                                  Here we go - stuff article from 2012. Damning stuff

                                                                                  https://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/latest-edition/7370102/Henry-suspected-match-fixing-after-07-loss

                                                                                  All Blacks coach Graham Henry was so stunned by the lopsided penalty count in the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to France he urged the New Zealand Rugby Union to call for an investigation into referee Wayne Barnes' performance.

                                                                                  In his biography, 'Graham Henry Final Word', by veteran author Bob Howitt, Henry reveals he briefly contemplated match-fixing as the only logical explanation for the All Blacks' upset 20-18 loss.

                                                                                  He analysed the game on video for his report to the rugby union and found Barnes had awarded only two penalties to New Zealand during the game.

                                                                                  His gut feeling, according to his biography, was that the video "would confirm that referee Wayne Barnes and his touch judges, Jonathan Kaplan from South Africa and Tony Spreadbury from England, hadn't exactly covered themselves in glory at the Millennium Stadium, that they had missed an obvious forward pass when France scored its match-winning try - a pass so forward everyone in the stadium had witnessed it except the referee - and that Barnes had been pretty lenient on the French at the breakdowns, probably costing the All Blacks the game".

                                                                                  His analysis was that France deserved to be penalised up to 40 times.

                                                                                  The video had three different angles and featured statistical breakdowns of lineouts, scrums, penalties, tackle counts, territory and possession. On those statistics, the All Blacks dominated. They had an overwhelming 73 per cent territorial advantage, winning 166 rucks to France's 42 and making only 73 tackles compared with France's 331.

                                                                                  A mind-boggled Henry was so stunned by his findings he told the rugby union it should "pressure the International Rugby Board to institute an inquiry".

                                                                                  He also said it was ''incomprehensible'' the IRB did not have strategies in place to investigate bizarre matches.

                                                                                  Howitt writes: "He knew if a comparable situation had occurred in other sports, it would be investigated. But there existed a blissful purity about rugby, or at least that's how everyone wanted to perceive it. It wasn't politically correct to even suggest the match officials might have favoured one team."

                                                                                  The rugby union chose not to push for an investigation.

                                                                                  He's sounding a bit Sith Ifrican here ...

                                                                                  I moved on. Got up the next day, flew home and then watched the semi's and quarters in a pub with my friends.

                                                                                  Henry, Smith, Hansen kept their jobs. And ultimately, delivered a world cup, and set the base for the following one as well.

                                                                                  At the end of the day, we still should have won. We didn't.

                                                                                  canefan Catogrande 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                                                  • canefan
                                                                                    canefan @MajorRage last edited by

                                                                                    @MajorRage said in Laporte:

                                                                                    @No-Quarter said in Laporte:

                                                                                    Here we go - stuff article from 2012. Damning stuff

                                                                                    https://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/latest-edition/7370102/Henry-suspected-match-fixing-after-07-loss

                                                                                    All Blacks coach Graham Henry was so stunned by the lopsided penalty count in the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to France he urged the New Zealand Rugby Union to call for an investigation into referee Wayne Barnes' performance.

                                                                                    In his biography, 'Graham Henry Final Word', by veteran author Bob Howitt, Henry reveals he briefly contemplated match-fixing as the only logical explanation for the All Blacks' upset 20-18 loss.

                                                                                    He analysed the game on video for his report to the rugby union and found Barnes had awarded only two penalties to New Zealand during the game.

                                                                                    His gut feeling, according to his biography, was that the video "would confirm that referee Wayne Barnes and his touch judges, Jonathan Kaplan from South Africa and Tony Spreadbury from England, hadn't exactly covered themselves in glory at the Millennium Stadium, that they had missed an obvious forward pass when France scored its match-winning try - a pass so forward everyone in the stadium had witnessed it except the referee - and that Barnes had been pretty lenient on the French at the breakdowns, probably costing the All Blacks the game".

                                                                                    His analysis was that France deserved to be penalised up to 40 times.

                                                                                    The video had three different angles and featured statistical breakdowns of lineouts, scrums, penalties, tackle counts, territory and possession. On those statistics, the All Blacks dominated. They had an overwhelming 73 per cent territorial advantage, winning 166 rucks to France's 42 and making only 73 tackles compared with France's 331.

                                                                                    A mind-boggled Henry was so stunned by his findings he told the rugby union it should "pressure the International Rugby Board to institute an inquiry".

                                                                                    He also said it was ''incomprehensible'' the IRB did not have strategies in place to investigate bizarre matches.

                                                                                    Howitt writes: "He knew if a comparable situation had occurred in other sports, it would be investigated. But there existed a blissful purity about rugby, or at least that's how everyone wanted to perceive it. It wasn't politically correct to even suggest the match officials might have favoured one team."

                                                                                    The rugby union chose not to push for an investigation.

                                                                                    He's sounding a bit Sith Ifrican here ...

                                                                                    I moved on. Got up the next day, flew home and then watched the semi's and quarters in a pub with my friends.

                                                                                    Henry, Smith, Hansen kept their jobs. And ultimately, delivered a world cup, and set the base for the following one as well.

                                                                                    At the end of the day, we still should have won. We didn't.

                                                                                    I moved on, right onto TSF and have been here ever since!!! #neverforget2007

                                                                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                                                                                    • First post
                                                                                      Last post