Alleged biting incident mars France’s win over Ireland at Women’s Rugby World Cup; no on-field sanction
Television footage appears to show France flanker Axelle Berthoumieu bite Ireland’s Aoife Wafer during quarterfinal at Sandy Park; match officials did not penalize the player
France's 18-13 quarterfinal victory over Ireland at the Women's Rugby World Cup on Sunday was overshadowed by an apparent biting incident that went unpunished during play at Sandy Park in Exeter.
Television coverage showed France flanker Axelle Berthoumieu appearing to put her mouth on the arm of Ireland forward Aoife Wafer while both players were on the ground in a ruck. Ireland captain Sam Monaghan said she spoke to referee Aimee Barrett-Theron about the incident after Wafer indicated she had been bitten.
A zoomed-in replay of the sequence was shown during TV coverage. The quarterfinal Television Match Official was not heard to report back to the referee that an additional check was being carried out, and no on-field sanction was issued to Berthoumieu during the match.
Monaghan said she raised the matter with the referee after the incident. "Aoife told me, I didn't see it myself, but I spoke to the referee and asked them," Monaghan said. "I hate seeing that in the game." Ireland coach Scott Bemand said his side followed the on-pitch process and that team officials could pursue the matter further if there were grounds to do so.
"I think in terms of process, your on-pitch leadership would mention to the referee," Bemand said. "Then it's up to the team officials to deal with it, should they see fit at that point. At the moment, I haven't seen anything. If there are bits to pursue, we could potentially be disappointed but we've followed the process as best we can from our perspective in terms of the on-pitch conversations."
Under tournament and international protocols, incidents missed or not dealt with fully on the field can be referred for post-match disciplinary review by the appropriate authorities. Any review would be separate from the result of the contest and, while it could lead to retrospective sanctioning of a player, it would not alter Ireland's elimination from the tournament.
France, who fielded 25-year-old flanker Axelle Berthoumieu, advanced to meet England in the semi-finals after edging Ireland 18-13. England reached the last four with a 40-8 victory over Scotland and are scheduled to face France on Saturday. The other semi-final will see New Zealand play Canada on Friday.
Tournament officials did not issue an immediate statement on the incident after the match. World Rugby and the tournament's disciplinary bodies have in the past reviewed acts of foul play captured on broadcast footage, and any formal referral or charge would be announced through the sport's established disciplinary channels.
The match at Sandy Park was one of two quarterfinals played on Sunday, and the alleged biting episode drew swift attention on social media and in broadcast coverage as teams and officials prepared for the semifinal schedule later in the week.