Australia and Bernard Foley break Scotland hearts in World Cup drama

Almost every game at this World Cup has captured the imagination but none has contained a more contentious late twist than this one. Australia are into the semi-finals but only by virtue of a disputed last-minute penalty kicked by Bernard Foley that will be debated everywhere from Sydney to the Shetland Isles for weeks, if not years, to come. For a moment it had seemed as if the unthinkable was about to unfold, Mark Bennett having intercepted a loose pass from the Wallaby replacement James Slipper to score under the posts with six minutes left. Greig Laidlaw’s conversion had put Scotland 34-32 ahead, with rain teeming down and the Wallabies suddenly facing oblivion, when the referee, Craig Joubert, awarded a penalty against the Scottish replacement Jon Welsh for catching a fumbled ball in an offside position. Subsequent examination of television replays indicated that the ball had been touched by Australia’s Nick Phipps before it reached Welsh, sparking anger in the BBC Radio 5 Live commentary box, where the former Scotland captain Gavin Hastings labelled the South African official a “disgrace” for not consulting the television match official and running from the field at the end. The TMO, technically, is not… Read full this story

Australia and Bernard Foley break Scotland hearts in World Cup drama have 328 words, post on www.theguardian.com at October 18, 2015. This is cached page on Drudgereport. If you want remove this page, please contact us.