Blame clumsy Dan Cole rather than referee for Leicester Tigers loss

Y et again, more officiating controversy. The Champions Cup final between Bordeaux Bègles and Northampton Saints was scarred by the extended deliberations of the officials, robbing a potentially fantastic match of its fluency. Now the Premiership final and Bath's first league triumph in 29 years is having to share the headlines with the referee.
Most people I have spoken to share the opinions of Michael Cheika. The Leicester Tigers head coach branded the hugely debated decision to send Dan Cole to the sin-bin in the 69th minute an 'embarrassment' for the game. Yet consider the incident this way. If a player turns his shoulder and jumps into the torso of an opponent, after the attacker has got rid of the ball, anything but a yellow-card verdict would be a surprise, to say the least.

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