Cameron Roigard criticised for ‘gamesmanship’ after Springboks defeat

Cameron Roigard has been criticised for appearing to exaggerate contact during New Zealand’s 29-24 defeat by South Africa in Soweto on Saturday.

The incident came during the third Greatest Rivalry Test, an epic encounter in which the Springboks secured victory over the All Blacks. It followed a penalty try awarded to South Africa after New Zealand’s scrum was dismantled in the second half.

After the referee’s whistle, the two scrumhalves became involved in a confrontation. New Zealand’s Roigard held on to South Africa’s Cobus Reinach, who then flipped the All Blacks player over and sent him to the ground.

Roigard immediately went down holding his head, although his head had not made contact with the surface. After reviewing the footage with the rest of the officiating team, referee Nika Amashukeli awarded New Zealand a penalty restart.

The decision and Roigard’s reaction became one of the main talking points of the match, with the scrumhalf’s actions drawing comparisons with behaviour more commonly associated with football.

It was also not the first time Roigard has been accused of simulating injury.

Speaking to SuperSport after the match, former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers criticised the New Zealand player’s conduct at the Calabash.

“A lot has been said about gamesmanship, and I will call it out there,” De Villiers said.

“This game of ours is a pride one. Taking a dive. Yes, [Reinach] kind of ripped him backwards, but it was certainly not a tip-tackle. A penalty at most,” he said.

Roigard was involved in another incident during the Super Rugby semi-final between the Hurricanes and the Blues earlier this year.

On that occasion, he went to ground while attempting to take a high ball. However, he quickly got back to his feet and took a tap kick from the resulting penalty, while Blues players believed he required treatment.

The latest episode has renewed criticism of the scrumhalf’s approach and prompted a strong response from De Villiers, who said such conduct was not appropriate in rugby.

The match itself was the third Test in the Greatest Rivalry series, with South Africa prevailing in a closely fought contest against their traditional rivals. The Springboks’ victory came after they were awarded the penalty try when their scrum overpowered the All Blacks in the second half.

The confrontation between Roigard and Reinach followed immediately afterwards, before the referee’s review led to the penalty restart for New Zealand. Replays showed that Roigard’s head had not struck the ground, despite the way he reacted after being flipped over.

His actions, alongside the earlier Super Rugby incident, have led to renewed debate over gamesmanship in the sport. De Villiers made clear that while contact had occurred, he did not believe the incident justified anything more than a penalty.

Behaviour like this simply has no place in the game.