While many rugby supporters have over the years threatened to hit referee Wayne Barnes, today at Thomond Park he did get hit. Courtesy of Ian Keatley and the match ball.
By Declan Whooley
The referee is not everyone’s cup of tea – ask any Kiwi fan – and is often involved in contentious decisions. Early in the game Leinster fans will be rueing the man in the middle after he reduced Racing Metro to 14 men early on in the crucial Heineken Cup game at Thomond Park.
With Munster chasing a knock-out spot in the competition, the home faithful and Munster players were happy with that decision, but Barnes soon found himself in the wars when out-half Keatley accidently kicked the ball at the ref’s face as he stood that bit too close to the action.
Pic credit: @MattRosslee
After a few minutes time out, the referee regained his composure and he did see the funny side of things. We’d imagine the Racing players had a few smug looks on their faces after it happened also.
Unfortunately we haven’t found any video of the shot, but we’re hoping one will surface soon.
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