Here are the latest rugby evening headlines on Saturday, July 2.
Biggar denies any wrongdoing in moment that lost the game
Wales captain Dan Biggar has denied any wrongdoing with the knock-on in the final play of the game which allowed South Africa to slot a penalty and win the game in the 82nd minute.
Biggar was penalised by Georgian referee Nika Amashukeli for a "deliberate" knock-on, but the Wales skipper has dubbed the decision "harsh".
Read more: Wales suffer agony in Test match for the ages as excruciating turning point sees history slip away
He told Wales' post-match press conference: "That’s a tough one. I thought the penalty was harsh. The ball's hit my hand rather than me slapping it down."
When initially asked about the referee's performance, Biggar said: "We’ve got to look at ourselves first. We gave some easy ins and some easy decisions. It’s difficult to say too much when you’re quite emotional. Some felt a bit harsh but conversely when you give South Africa an in, it’s hard to stop and it’s probably hard to referee then."
Tomas Francis ruled out of next Wales match
Tomas Francis will miss Wales' second Test with South Africa next weekend and could yet miss the series finale the following week.
The Wales prop, who was brought on from the replacements bench in the second half of the 32-29 defeat to the Springboks, was forced to leave the field after just a few minutes after taking a knee to the head in a low tackle.
He will now progress through concussion protocols, and is therefore ruled out of next Saturday's Test. Speaking in the post-match press conference, Wales boss Wayne Pivac said: “He’s okay in the changing room. He will go through the normal protocols. I would think he will definitely be out of the second Test, and we will have to wait and see whether or not he is available for the third.”
Pivac rues Wales indiscipline and 'one that got away'
Wales head coach Wayne Pivac has rued his team going down to 12 men against the world champion Springboks in their own backyard, citing the lack of discipline as "disappointing".
Dan Biggar, Rhys Carre, Alun Wyn Jones and Louis Rees-Zammit were all sent to the sin-bin during Wales' 32-29 defeat to South Africa in Pretoria on Saturday night, with three of those sin-bin spells overlapping each other in the dying minutes of the game.
"It was a huge effort, but when you're down to 12 men against the world champs it is very difficult," Pivac told Sky Sports. "The effort was huge, we were on the wrong side of the referee today and we will go away and look at the decisions and the cards.
"There were errors we made so they could build pressure too. It was a shame they got away with it at the end, because I would have taken a draw. It was a big step up from our last performance but the discipline is clearly disappointing."
Wales have two more Tests against the Springboks and go into a potential series-levelling fixture next Saturday, with the men in red chasing a first ever Welsh win on South African soil.
"People will see we have put in a solid effort, people have opinions, what we need to do now is focus on the second Test and we look forward to it," Pivac added. "I'm very proud but very disappointed, it is one that got away. We will roll our sleeves up and go again."
Wales flanker Dan Lydiate added: "I'm gutted, there was a lot of momentum shifts in that game and we thought we nicked it but it wasn't to be. We have to dust ourselves off and go harder next week. Discipline, we talked about it going into the camp, and we have to look at ourselves and rectify it for next week."
Kolisi: 'Wales came out guns blazing'
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi has praised Wales' performance and how they caused so many problems for the hosts in Pretoria.
"It was tough out there as we predicted," he told Sky. "They stopped our mauls and we couldn't get going, but the way we came back, that's what we take pride in. They came out guns blazing but I'm so proud.
"Wales knew what we wanted to do and they stopped that to start, we weren't kicking on our terms. So we had to find energy, the guys off the bench did that, we have so much respect for them and it is always difficult to play them."
Eddie Jones claims referees help red-carded teams
Eddie Jones insisted that referee James Doleman "evened up" England's clash with Australia in Perth as a result of sending off Wallabies lock Darcy Swain, claiming all referees help a red-carded team.
England were dismal as they stumbled to a 30-28 defeat - a fourth successive loss and first to Australia since Jones took charge in 2015 - despite facing 14 men for a second consecutive match.
Swain was shown a red card for a 34th-minute headbutt on Jonny Hill and although the tourists were leading 6-3 at the time, they duly fell apart with the final scoreline given an undeserved sheen by late tries from Henry Arundell and Jack van Poortvliet.
While Jones clarified that he did not blame Doleman for losing the first Test at Optus Stadium, he claimed that Swain's exit inadvertently helped Australia. "You look at the history of the game, whenever you get a red card the referee evens it up. He helps the team with the red card," Jones said.
"It's social reciprocity, it happens, that's normal and we've got to be good enough to handle it. That happens in every game of rugby I've seen. The team gets a red card and the opposition gets evened up. Because they're nice blokes, referees.
"I'm not criticising the referees, I'm not using it as an excuse, that's the reality of rugby. I'll say it again. I think when you play against 14 men the referee has a significant impact on the game and you've got to be good enough to understand what that is. We weren't good enough to understand what that is and therefore we paid the price."
Sexton could be available for next Ireland clash
Ireland head coach Andy Farrell revealed captain Johnny Sexton could be available for next weekend's second Test following a resounding 42-19 loss to New Zealand in the series opener. Influential fly-half Sexton was forced off after half an hour of a punishing evening in Auckland after suffering a head injury.
The 36-year-old satisfied a post-match assessment and will undergo further tests to determine whether he can feature in Dunedin on Saturday.
"Johnny is good, he is in fine spirits," said Farrell. "HIA (head injury assessment) two is passed, HIA three will hopefully be passed in a few days. If that happens, it's concussion not confirmed."
Sexton departed in the aftermath of Sevu Reece's breakaway try and did not return, having slipped and collided with New Zealand captain Sam Cane in the build-up.
Farrell, who saw Sexton's replacement Joey Carbery and Josh Van Der Flier each agonisingly thwarted on the try line by Rieko Ioane in the second period, rued his side's profligacy. "I thought we brought them down pretty well from time to time," he said. "I think we deserve a bit of a pat on the back for that, for getting at least five opportunities to score. We'll obviously have a look at reasons why we actually didn't convert."
Second-string France beat Japan
A second-string France team commanded a 42-23 victory over Japan on Saturday morning, with winger Damian Penaud notching up two tries.
The two countries were level 13-13 at the break but Grand Slam champions Les Bleus put in a stronger second-half performance, with the visitors' power and fitness proving decisive in the hot and humid conditions in Aichi.
Penaud now has 18 international tries to his name, while the return of fly-half Matthieu Jalibert after a serious injury was celebrated as he set up two of France's five tries. He has been out of the team for eight months due to a thigh tear. Full-back Melvyn Jaminet added 17 points from his boot.
The two sides will face each other again next Saturday in the second Test in Tokyo.
Read next:
- South Africa v Wales match halted for seven minutes amid concerning scenes
- Australia v England halted as Tom Banks suffers gruesome injury and Sky Sports commentators apologise for replays
- Australia giant sent off for headbutting England star who pulled his hair
- All Blacks star's 'sickening' challenge against Ireland sparks furore as officials stand accused
