Dan Cole breaks silence on THAT national anthem and claims he should have ‘thrown an elbow’ on Finn Russell
Dan Cole on THAT national anthem
On Saturday, Bath beat Leicester Tigers 23-21 in a historic Premiership final at Twickenham, securing their first title in 29 years.
The event was filled with excitement, passion, frustration, anger and even bemusement – and that was just Dan Cole.
The 38-year-old arrived on the field in the 63rd minute as his side, Leicester, were pulling their way back into the game after Bath had taken a comprehensive early second-half lead.
Just five minutes after his arrival onto the field, however, Cole was ushered straight back to the touchline by referee Karl Dickson after being given a yellow card for a charge down on Bath number ten Finn Russell.
Cole had been attempting to stop the Bath playmaker from kicking the ball into the sky. Russell released the ball in time, causing the barrelling forward to crash into the Scottish star.
The now-retired prop reflected on his final ever professional appearance on his podcast, For The Love Of Rugby with Ben Youngs, joking: “I got such a good reception going on, I wanted to have one another one, I got greedy.”
Dan Cole’s reaction to the yellow card
Admitting that his career ended in the sin-bin, Cole addressed his feelings following the event, saying: “I feel gutted for the game, I feel embarrassed for getting sent off in such a big game, I feel responsible for letting the team down.”
On what he would do differently if he knew he was going to be yellow carded, Cole wondered if it would have been better to have actually tried taking Russell with him, saying: “I kinda wish I’d thrown an elbow or something and actually got red carded and hopefully got him off the field so he can’t kick.
“I got a yellow card for attempting a charge down. I didn’t jump out of the way, I didn’t do anything.
“It was one of a few decisions I thought he got wrong,” Cole said about referee Karl Dickson.
Dan Cole’s face during the national anthem
That’s the excitement, passion, frustration, and anger dealt with; now what about the bemusement? Well, that came in before the match had even started.
The national anthem was belted out rather unconventionally, with Eurovision star Sam Ryder shredding ‘God Save The King’ on his guitar.
Fans were quick to spot Dan Cole’s reaction to the event, which matched much of the surrounding crowd, desperately trying not to smirk.
Many fans were quick to express their own thoughts on the matter, with one fan saying: “Horrific, please never again shame our national anthem in that way!”
Another added: “I don’t mind it being played at a domestic really, & would have liked the updated guitar version… But at least keep it in time / recognisable so people can sing.”
Dan Cole reacts to THAT national anthem
As previously mentioned, Dan Cole has retired, so he now speaks a little more freely than perhaps he would have done before. So, on that note, here’s what he’s had to say about that dubious rendition:
“I think this is a good time to get out of the game, it’s gone mad. They really butchered the national anthem.”
It was clear to see that the legendary prop was not impressed, and neither were many of his teammates, colleagues or fans. Perhaps next year the organisers may pay a little more attention to their current market, not just their target.
