Picture Credit: Twitter
La Rochelle coach Ronan O' Gara got shoved aggressively by a Clermont player, Benjamin Urdapilleta, in French Top 14 match on Sunday, September 3. The incident took place at the Stade Marcel Michelin when the ball fell at the touchline and O' Gara tried to get out of the way. However, the La Rochelle coach didn't react, and things did heat up further.
During the match, a high ball fell at the touchline where the 46-year-old was standing. However, just when O' Gara was about to move away as Urdapilleta was trying to claim the possession of the ball, he bumped into the player. The incident left Urdapilleta fuming in anger, and he pushed the Irishman twice.
Watch the video here:
The Ra Rochelle coach didn't lose his cool and stumbled backwards with what happened. The game ended with Clermont winning the game 11-10, where the Argentine kicked the winning penalty. After the match, the 37-year-old player claimed that O' Gara did everything on purpose.
In a post-match interview with Canal+, Urdapilleta said, "With the adrenaline, I sometimes have a few excesses, but he is smart, I think he did it on purpose to prevent me from receiving the ball." He went on to say, “At the time of the action, we were behind in the score, so it was complicated. But it’s sport, it can happen. Once the match is over, you forget.”
