Etzebeth and Alaalatoa put Puma to shame after classless act against All Blacks
There were some odd moments this past weekend in the Rugby Championship, but the strangest of all had to be the bizarre meeting of All Blacks hooker Dane Coles and Argentina flanker Pablo Matera after the match.
As both sides were doing their post match handshakes, Coles reached out his hand towards Matera, who, instead of shaking it, actually pushed the All Black before walking past him. It was a very odd moment indeed, and no one is completely sure why he did it. The two had crossed each other’s path during the match, but there was nothing out of the ordinary.
There was hardly a moment like Eben Etzebeth’s altercation with Allan Alaalatoa later that day, but both of them seemed to be back on good terms after the match. In fact, Coles was only on the pitch for ten minutes, so he could hardly have annoyed Matera that much to evoke such an odd reaction.
Compared with Etzebeth and Alaalatoa, who looked like they were going to kill each other during their match, this does not paint Matera in a good light, as both the Springbok and the Wallaby were seen after the game sharing a beer with each other. Ultimately, most people hold the belief that rugby is a game where any differences or grievances are left on the pitch and not carried on after the game.
This was the moment after the Australia versus South Africa match:
🤝 More than rugby @Springboks#Wallabies @eToroAU #AUSvRSA pic.twitter.com/hDHjXFTcto
— Wallabies (@wallabies) September 4, 2022
Maybe Matera can be cut a little slack though, as at the end of the day, his side had just endured quite a hammering by the All Blacks, losing 53-3 in Hamilton.
That result leaves the All Blacks at the top of the Rugby Championship table on ten points, one point ahead of South Africa, Australia and Argentina, who are all on nine points.
This was the incident between Matera and Coles:
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