This event is likely to be talked about.
During the meeting between England and Argentina for the World Rugby Sevens, world rugby sevens circuit which takes place in Toulouse, an unlikely scene took place.
Indeed, the British took no less than two minutes and eight seconds before flattening in the in-goal of their opponent.
Already qualified for the quarter-finals of the world rugby sevens tournament, the Argentinians were leading in the score and were preparing to win the match.
And the VII of the Rose reduced the score in the last moments of the meeting thanks to a race of more than 100m from Will Homer.
Thanks to this try, the English, despite their defeat, passed the Canadians on the difference of points.
Alone in the opposing in-goal, the Englishman therefore took two minutes to flatten, to let the clock slip away in order to maintain this favorable result.
The Argentinians, not being bothered by the British try, did not deign to react and left him to wait quietly, without pressing, to let the Englishman score after two minutes.
What did not please the spectators.
Unique.
Weird.
Controversial
Time seems to stand still in Toulouse as England deliberately delay scoring the try that takes them through to the quarter-finals - and Argentina, down to six men and also going through, let them#HSBC7s |
#France7 pic.twitter.com/nF29JbVpdy
— World Rugby Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) May 21, 2022
This very special test had an impact on the classification of group A. With +18 goal average, the English finally finished second in their group under the nose and beard of the Canadians, who had the same number of points (seven) but had a +14 point difference.
Argentina, meanwhile, finished top of the group with seven points and a favorable goal average of +43.
Both English and Argentines were finally eliminated in the quarter-finals.
A form of justice?
The scene is in any case reminiscent of other inglorious arrangements in the history of sport, the most infamous being the Germany-Austria "game of shame" during the 1982 FIFA World Cup, when the two teams almost stopped playing at 1-0 for the Mannschaft because the score qualified the two teams at the expense of Algeria.
