'All blacks, sour grapes?': South African press mocks New Zealand 'bad losers'
It is not surprising that the South African press was only heaping praise on the Springboks after their fourth World Cup win and their close success over New Zealand (12-11). Daily Sun releases 'On Top of the World' song to evoke victory. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is widely quoted in his post-match speech: “Stronger together is a belief that has come alive among Springbok supporters across our country, our continent and the world. Sport has the power to change individual lives and lift the spirits of entire nations.” Before adding: “Tonight Siya Kolisi and the 2023 World Cup champions gave us an exceptional and inspiring national achievement that lifts our hearts and raises our flag high.”
“A heartbreaking ending.”
In passing, the country's media highlights the “bad loser” side of New Zealand journalism. With this headline from The Star: “All Blacks, sour grapes? » It is true that the New Zealand press insists on the red card and sending-off of Sam Chan in the 34th minute. This, in its opinion, distorted the final result. Referee Wayne Barnes and video official Tom Foley were targeted, They are both English. According to former All Black Israel Dagg on Sky Sport, “Our main event has been overshadowed by a few people who have taken the glory and shine away from the players. Honestly, I'm just fed up… This puts fear in the minds of our players (…).”
“You can understand why people stopped watching this game,” Daag adds. Because it's very boring because you don't have the best players. There were some controversial moments, but they were resolved after the match. There was no malice in Ken's actions. »For the New Zealand Herald, the final was “heartbreaking”. “It was a sad moment for the World Cup, because nobody supposedly wanted a red card to make the difference in the final,” lamented the New Zealand media.
De Klerk's summaries and Federer's congratulations
In a lighter record, the newspaper “The Star”, in South Africa, confirms the new striptease of Faf de Klerk, half of the population of South Africa who is accustomed to celebrating, in the locker room, successes wearing only underwear in the colors of the country's flag. “No victory would be complete without these summaries,” explained the newspaper, which also reported that Roger Federer, the Swiss tennis legend and whose mother is from South Africa, was present this time in the dressing room to congratulate the Springboks.