LONDON: England's rugby chief has sent an apology to Australia's high commissioner in London after the Wallabies' goalkickers were booed and jeered during their 28-14 win at Twickenham.
RFU president Brian Williams wrote to high commissioner John Dauth apologising for the "bad manners" shown by England fans towards Wallabies goalkickers during Saturday's game. But Dauth, who watched the game alongside Williams, has brushed off the controversy, saying the Wallabies have endured even "louder booing and more intimidation" from New Zealand supporters in the past.
"I was high commissioner in New Zealand before I came here and I can tell you the reaction to the Australian team at Eden Park [in Auckland] would vastly outweigh anything at Twickenham," Dauth told BBC Radio 4. "New Zealanders are on the whole lustier when it comes to supporting sport than most countries in the world."
The Wallabies showed little sign of being bothered by the booing and jeering as Matt Giteau kicked superbly to land six penalties and a conversion and skipper Stirling Mortlock succeeded with his one long-range penalty attempt.
But Williams said he was "very annoyed" about the crowd behaviour and had ordered an investigation as to why his calls for the abusive fans to quieten down was not broadcast over the ground's public address system.
"I apologised to the high commissioner, John Dauth, as we sat watching the game and heard the noise when they lined up their first penalty," he told The Daily Mail. "I wasted no time. I am a great supporter of the ethos of the game and this strikes me as another example of how the crowd is changing and that maybe many of those responsible are not real rugby supporters.
"They are letting England down. After the second Australian penalty, the noise gradually got worse. I think it's awful. Real rugby supporters don't behave like that because they know it's wrong to show anything less than complete respect to the kickers from both sides."
Meanwhile, in Edinburgh, Scotland assistant coach Sean Lineen has come to the defence of Dan Parks after the Australia-born five-eighth endured his latest dose of verbal abuse from fans at Murrayfield.
Parks, who plays for Glasgow, has never been the most popular player at Edinburgh, in part on account of his ancestry but also because of some inconsistent displays for his adopted country.
Lineen told the BBC on Monday: "I was disappointed at that kind of response, it's not good for the lad's confidence. He tries hard every time he pulls on the jersey and I'd like to think the players and public will support him."
Agencies
