‘He offers his arm!’ – Ex-England star left fuming as France win following ‘soft decision’

Former England wing Ugo Monye has hit out at the decision to award France a late penalty which decided the game on Saturday.

Ben Earl was penalised for a no-arms tackle on Romain Taofifenua with just under three minutes remaining in the match.

From the halfway line, Thomas Ramos slotted the resultant kick for Les Bleus to give the hosts a dramatic 33-31 Six Nations triumph.

Wrap or not wrap?

Monye was left frustrated, however, as he felt the England number eight had wrapped his arms.

“Angus Gardner is a top ref, but what a soft decision to decide a game like this,” the ex-wing said on ITV. “I’m sorry, Ben Earl offers his arm up – I think we see that type of tackle many a time in the game.

“Credit to Thomas Ramos for knocking that kick over, but I think that as the decisive decision to decide the game – I don’t know, it’s soft for me.

“He offers his arm! He offers his arm! He offers his arm here; he doesn’t wrap it because he’s got Taofifenua, who’s 23 stone, going through him.”

Benjamin Kayser was also on the panel, and the former France hooker understood why the decision was made but that Earl and England were unfortunate.

“I think it’s harsh, because on top of that if you take the person he had one incredible tournament and I think those tackles you see them a lot during a game,” said Kayser.

“When you have such a powerful ball carrier… for me, the elbow is on the floor, so for me, it is shoulder-first, but I agree with you that it’s a half-decision.”

Thomas Ramos’ clutch kick sees France edge England in seven-try Six Nations thriller

‘Absurd’

Opinion was split on social media, with Tight Five Rugby frustrated over the call, writing on X, formerly Twitter: “Nevermind the timing or context of the game… Giving a penalty for that is absurd.”

However, others disagreed with that view, including some of Earl’s fellow countrymen. After ex-Ireland front-row Bernard Jackman posted the video, one person responded: “As an Englishman, no arms tackle.

“It’s hugely unfortunate, as I suspect Ben is clearly shattered. Also, lots off these sorts of tackles happen every game.

“It’s a tough decision to decide a match. Correct call to the letter of the law, however hugely inconsistent application.”

That was a view from many observers, who felt the call was technically correct but that there were similar tackles which went unpunished during the clash, including one which saw Damian Penaud get away with a no-arms hit on Ollie Lawrence.

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