Wales can now aim for the Grand Slam after picking up the Triple Crown when beating England 19-12 in an intense Six Nations game at Twickenham yesterday. The match went down to the final play, when David Strettle was held up over the line.
Leigh Halfpenny made a courageous tackle on Strettle as England looked to get into a position from which they would kick to draw the game. Halfpenny put his body on the line, seemingly knocking himself out in the process, before Jon Davies and George North held up the Saracens winger.
Strettle has since insisted that he felt the ball touch the ground, despite television match official Iain Ramage having numerous looks at the incident and finding the footage inconclusive.
“I felt the ball touch the floor,” said Strettle. “If it is inconclusive you have to go with the attacking team. When they showed it on the big screen it looked like it went down as well,” he added, before saying that he felt the touch judge was in the best position to adjudicate on the decision.
“The strange thing for me was that I was hoping the touch judge might have seen it because our physio was standing right next to him and he says it was grounded. I can’t understand why we have not gone back for that penalty,” he added, referring to the advantage played by ref Steve Walsh.
A few minutes earlier Welsh replacement center Scott Williams ripped the ball from England lock Courtney Lawes and sped away for what turned out to be the decisive try.
“We knew it would be the toughest game, and it was tough. We are over the moon to get the Triple Crown here,” said captain Sam Warburton, who led from the front as always.
Wales face Italy next, then a meeting with France which could be their Grand Slam decider.
In your opinion, was the decision at the end correct?
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