Los Pumas head coach Felipe Contepomi has accused Tom Curry of shoving him in the tunnel after England\u2019s 27-23 victory over Argentina.<\/p>\n
The legendary fly-half was fuming in the post-match press conference and on the sidelines in the latter stages of the match after his full-back, Juan Cruz Mallia, was forced off the field injured.<\/p>\n
The Toulouse star was hit late by Curry after he kicked the ball upfield, with the collision injuring the player\u2019s knee, meaning Argentina<\/a> had to play the final knockings down to 14 men.<\/p>\n Curry<\/a> was penalised for the late hit, but was issued with no further sanction, which left Contepomi<\/a> irate in the aftermath as his team fell agonisingly close to a come-from-behind victory.<\/p>\n Rodrigo Isgro\u2019s try shortly before the 80-minute mark gave Los Pumas one final shot at a win after Mallia was helped off the pitch, but Ben Earl dived on a loose ball with time up on the clock to seal the win for the hosts.<\/p>\n Curry\u2019s tackle<\/p>\n A journalist asked Contepomi about Curry\u2019s tackle in the post-match press conference, with the Pumas legend snapping back, \u201cWhat did you make of that?\u201d<\/p>\n The reporter pressed again, and he replied: \u201cWell, I don\u2019t know where to start with it. I\u2019m not sure if I\u2019d call it reckless. What did you make of it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSlightly late?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Taken back, Contepomi continued: \u201cSlightly late? Ok but two weeks ago, we had a decision that it was deemed because of the consequence, so if that\u2019s the criteria, I can\u2019t understand that we must then play the rest of the game with 14 players after a \u2018slightly late\u2019 tackle like you described, I\u2019d call it reckless \u2013 I\u2019m not English speaking but I\u2019d call it reckless.<\/p>\n \u201cWe ended up playing with 14, we ended up playing with 15, and it wasn\u2019t even checked.\u201d<\/p>\n The head coach was also annoyed about the HIAs that had to be conducted during the match, with one player erroneously clapping with the mouthguard that tracks the collisions, triggering the need for a test.<\/p>\n He admits that was the player\u2019s doing but bemoaned that Pablo Matera had to undergo an HIA after a high tackle that was not checked by the officials.<\/p>\n \u201cThis wonderful mouthguard technology\u2026 We had three HIAs, one was a misusage by one of our players \u2013 that was 100% his fault \u2013 but Matera had to come off because it was a head contact and it wasn\u2019t checked,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, what are we using this technology for? I think it\u2019s a misuse or abuse; it\u2019s not great, but I don\u2019t understand where it goes.\u201d<\/p>\n England player ratings: Max Ojomoh\u2019s \u2018debut to remember\u2019 while Lions star has \u2018poor\u2019 return<\/a><\/p>\n Tunnel bust-up<\/p>\n After the final whistle, there was a bit of scuffle between the England<\/a> and Argentina players, with the broadcasting camera showing Curry being the first player to leave the pitch, with his teammates sprinting down the tunnel soon after.<\/p>\n It was clear that the Pumas\u2019 players were annoyed about Curry\u2019s actions, and Contepomi was also fuming, particularly after the England flanker shoved him in the tunnel.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was not only the tackle by Curry because it\u2019s probably part of his nature to bully people; he came into the tunnel, and he gave me a shove on the chest,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe that\u2019s just in his nature, I don\u2019t know, but those are the guys whom we are rewarding and praising \u2013 maybe that\u2019s where we want rugby to go.<\/p>\n