Brian Moore has called on World Rugby to properly investigate the incidents that marred the Argentina v England Nations Championship clash on Saturday.
In a fraught encounter between the two rivals, there were several controversial moments before and during the game, but it came to a head on the final whistle.
After Los Pumas were denied a try which could have levelled the match, the Argentinian players were seen arguing with referee Angus Gardner.
Disgraceful scenes at the end
Fly-half Tomas Albornoz was seen making physical contact with Gardner, while there were reports of an object being thrown at the Australian referee as he exited the field.
There were a number of flashpoints between the two sets of players in the 80 minutes, but it was what happened after the game had ended which were the most serious allegations.
“The most unfortunate consequence of hostility around the game was not the pushing and shoving between players,” Moore wrote in his Telegraph column.
“That happens and, although this is not something the authorities cannot do, I sometimes wish it was possible for the officials to give the players permission to have one mass brawl, after which we can all get on with playing or watching rugby.
“What is more disturbing are the reports that the referee, Angus Gardner, was subject to abuse after the game and that something was thrown at him from the crowd.
“I did not like the sight of Tomas Albonoz, the Argentina fly-half, making light contact with the Australian official after he ruled out their potentially match-tying try. Barge opponents all you want, but players should never be allowed to lay a hand on officials.”
England won the game 31-24 but the result has almost become somewhat of an irrelevance in the aftermath of the contest.
Argentina lit the fuse before the match when they wore shirts inspired by the 1986 Argentinian football team – where Diego Maradona famously scored the ‘Hand of God’ goal against the English – and it became even more tense when the encounter began.
After Tommy Freeman scored the first try early on, Mateo Carreras appeared to land a cheap shot on the visiting wing, leading to an angry reaction.
A scuffle broke out when Albornoz was alleged to have struck Freeman in the face, but it was Ollie Chessum who was remarkably penalised, despite the blindside seemingly looking to de-escalate the situation.
Although surprisingly no cards were shown in that incident, seven players were sin-binned, albeit mostly for technical offences.
“World Rugby has a duty to fully investigate these reports and, if there is any truth to them, sanction Argentina in a meaningful way,” Moore wrote.
“Rugby cannot afford to have its officials made vulnerable when they are doing their best to referee difficult games that sometimes have a bewildering level of complexity over its established laws.
“The fact seven yellow cards were issued in one game is not indisputable evidence of what one pundit called ‘comic-level refereeing’.”
Moore has therefore called on World Rugby to take this matter seriously and hand out punishments if the alleged perpetrators are found to have contravened rugby’s laws.
“I have a feeling that World Rugby will want to make light of these claims but if it does so, it will further discourage people from wanting to participate in officiating and it will be abrogating its responsibilities,” he added.
“Attracting officials is getting harder and World Rugby needs to do all it can to stop this trend.
“There is a further point about the hostility that surrounded this game that needs investigating by World Rugby. It is the fact that Argentina were allowed to play in kit that referenced the 1986 one worn by the Argentina football team, a campaign that included the infamous cheating of Diego Maradona and his ‘Hand of God’ goal against England.
“Why was this needless provocative gesture allowed? Rugby is a game of violent collisions and is already dangerous enough without this sort of playground posturing.”
