Sam Warburton has revealed the real reason he didn’t kick off after being shown a red card in the World Cup semi-final.
Thirteen years ago, Wales faced France in the last four of the tournament in New Zealand. Warren Gatland’s side had just dispatched Ireland in the quarter-finals, with tries from Mike Phillips, Shane Williams and Jonathan Davies contributing to victory.
Captain Warburton, only 22 years old, led the Welsh team against France in a bid to reach the final for the first time in Welsh rugby history.
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A close one-goal game that will forever be remembered for the unfortunate moment when Warburton received a red card for a chip tackle on Vincent Clair in the 20th minute.
By today’s standards, it would have been a simple sending off and not much of a controversy. However, in 2011, the game was very different and this decision was hotly debated at the time.
Quite remarkable, Warburton did not complain about his dismissal and calmly left the field. The Welsh legend has revealed why.
“That probably comes from watching football for so many years. I hate the disrespect towards referees in football, hate is a strong word,” Warburton said on the Business of Sport podcast. ” I looked back.
“I want soccer referees to set a precedent and say, ‘You have five seconds. If you can’t get away from my face within five seconds, it’s a red card.’ 5,4,3,2,1 – Red, go now. Don’t talk to me like that.
“I wish there was a comprehensive version of that because that’s what happens in rugby, you’re gone.
“When I got the red card, I thought, ‘Just walk off the pitch without complaining,’ because I got a yellow card for a technical violation. I was a clean player. That’s who I am. That was the only red card I ever got.”I was a physical player, but I was never a dirty player.
“I got a yellow card at under-20 level and played for the Welsh Channel. When I got home my mum cut me on the back of the head. You don’t realize that when you play sport.” I was on TV when I was younger and the camera was panning over me as I walked away?
“She said in a joking but serious way, ‘Please don’t ever curse on TV again. The cameras are watching you the whole time you’re off the pitch.’ I was yelling the whole time” off.
“So when I got the red card[in France]the first thing I thought, strangely, was, millions of people are watching, just walk away, don’t complain, don’t curse. , she said, because her mother would be angry.
“That was my first thought! I was just sitting on the side of the pitch. I thought it was tough. I thought it was tough at the time, but when it was rebroadcast I saw it on the screen. I looked back at it, and when I looked at it a third of the way, I changed my perspective, and I thought – “Oh my god.”
“It looked much worse than it actually felt.”
Wales put in a brave performance despite being down by one man and lost the match 8-9. New Zealand defeated France by one point with a scoreline of 8-7 and went on to win the tournament.
“It was much more discreet and not as large as this example,” Warburton continued.
“I thought I was going to be the bad guy. It’s very similar to Beckham in 1998 (against Argentina). When I go back to my home country, people will hate me and my international career is over. I thought it would be really difficult. I kept myself to myself and didn’t go out in public for several weeks.
“When I got home, it was really great. People outside my house, people knocking on my door, people running up to me at the supermarket, everyone was so supportive and I was so happy.”
Despite this setback, Warburton went on to have an incredible career. He captained the British & Irish Lions on two successive tours, winning against Australia in 2013 and drawing against New Zealand in 2017. He captained Wales 49 times before retiring in 2018.