Connacht’s Mack Hansen Criticizes Officiating, Stating Team “Never Get Any Calls”

Connacht incurred 15 penalties during their loss to Leinster, while the home team, Leinster, was penalized 16 times. Following Connacht’s 20-12 defeat by Leinster in the United Rugby Championship at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, Connacht wing Mack Hansen expressed that the officiating made it seem as though his team was competing against “16 men.” During the match, Leinster received two yellow cards in the second half and was penalized 16 times, compared to Connacht’s 15 penalties. The Ireland international stated, “To be honest, it felt like we were getting reffed out of the game for the first 40 minutes, pretty much.” He continued, “Then, we were able to do our thing. We were able to show the exciting rugby that we play.” Hansen added, “We’re not a team for excuses, but that’s what I feel. I feel like the first bit we were getting pressured from what seemed like 16 men against us instead of 15, to be honest.” When Connacht’s head coach, Pete Wilkins, was questioned about his agreement with Hansen’s statement, the 26-year-old player interrupted to say, “Can I say something real quick about the situation?” He then elaborated, “Like, I feel like we get this every week. We never get any calls, ever. I’ve been feeling this for years now.” Referee Chris Busby issued a total of three yellow cards during the match, with two going to Leinster players and one to a Connacht player. Hansen voiced his disapproval regarding an extended Television Match Official [TMO] review following a tackle by Connacht fly-half Josh Ioane on Leinster hooker Gus McCarthy, which concluded with the officiating team awarding only a penalty. He contrasted this with what he perceived as a lack of similar scrutiny when Bundee Aki was struck by Jordie Barrett during a ruck. The Irish Rugby Football Union [IRFU] supplied the officiating crew for the interprovincial derby, which attracted a crowd of 33,963 spectators in Dublin. Chris Busby served as the referee, supported by assistants Peter Martin and Stuart Gaffikin, with Mark Patton acting as the TMO. Hansen further commented, “You can’t possibly tell me yourselves sitting there, like checking the Gus McCarthy one, how much? How much did they check that, 10, 11 times?” He continued, “Bundee gets a direct hit to the head, it’s quite obvious, no call, doesn’t care.” Hansen expressed, “It’s like we get that every time… and it’s starting to get really frustrating for us because people will say we are an inconsistent team but when you are getting some of the calls we’re getting, of course, you are going to be.” He concluded by stating, “I’m not making excuses by any means but, when you just get it week after week, I feel it’s got to be spoken about… we just feel we’re getting played out of games and we never ever get any calls.”