is French. Which is unfortunate.

A referee (and referee assessor) writes:
Not Rolland's fault at all.

The law is quite specific about spear and tip tackles. It also is clear, in black and white, that he isn't allowed to rule on intent. Warburton's tackle fits all the criteria for the Red Card. We have to START at red, and then work backwards from there.
I couldn't see anything to mitigate the red within the confines of the law.

Blame many things, but not the referee. Alain Rolland did exactly what he supposed to.

....because the key objection seems to be "well, he ruined it as a contest" - which, interestingly, he didn't. But he might have done. Presumably the ref is not allowed to keep that in mind. He has to enforce the laws. In the last Football World Cup Final Howard Webb tried to keep everybody on the pitch even as the Dutch seemed to be trying to get sent off.

It seems not that long ago that really big, career deciding games of all kinds, not just rugby, were never marred by sendings-off. Nowadays they seem to happen all the time. Isn't it just a case of the players getting too cranked up to be able to control themselves?

is inconsistency: there have been several tackles that have been worse than that in the world cup. None have led to a sending off.

it ruined the game and the thought of an undeserving team going thru to the final is horrible.

I'm not welsh, have no welsh blood but they was robbed.

I deffo want whoever plays the French in the final to win. They just don't deserve it.

...to get over this one.
I called the incident as a yellow as soon as I saw it - Warburton lifted Clerc's feet over his head level, but he eased him down rather than 'speared' him, which would have been a red.
What pains me is that Clerc milked the incident, then made a miraculous recovery once the decision had been made. That stuff belongs in football.

I am glad to see that in each interview so far, bar Gatland's, the Welsh team have not dwelt on the red card decision.

I support the Welsh and sadly it was a couple of missed kicks that did for us in the end (Hook especially). And Stephen Jones could have taken a drop goal opp when he had it, although in fairness we looked like scoring another try at that stage which must have been in his mind.

Wales have been brilliant in this World Cup and were really unlucky today. Had just one of those kicks gone over ...

I must, however, say that France -during last week's tie against England- started to look like a side that was determined (and perhaps destined) to prevail.

I'm not a huge rugby fan but I sympathise with the spectators who paid to see an evenly contested game. I just think referees are too quick to make such fundamental decisions, particularly at an early stage in the game. There was another example in the Everton - Liverpool match a few weeks ago where the ref made a quick, and absolutely wrong decision to send off Rodwell, thereby ruining that match. In rugby, why not use video technology to have a good look at the incident before a decision is taken? Of course, there's no video technology in football which is a farce. It's the 21st century for heaven's sake!

Rolland should - or at least could have - have consulted his touch judges and gone to Video Ref. Rugby is more affected than soccer by a sending-off as the sheer physical effort of coping with a man less is disabling and because the positions in rugby are more specialized.

In the circumstances, Wales' effort was incredible - and had their kickers had better luck or aim or range - would still have won. One thing that they can be criticized for is not engineering a drop-goal attempt when camped just outside the French 22, in the middle of the park, with less than 10 minutes to go.

As for France, they were adequate and tactically astute but their lack of verve against a 14 man opposition was disappointing. On this performance neither NZ or Aus will be quaking in their boots at facing them. It also shows up in sharp relief how abject England were.

as far as I'm concerned, and I'm glad that at least some of the Massive agree.

The ITV panel were a biased joke. Can you imagine if, let's say, a South African had done that to an Englishman? They'd have been screaming for him to be sent off.

Rugby is not my favourite sport, and I must say that I do not know all the rules, but it seemed to my untrained eye that that kinda tackle is commonplace in ruggers... the French guy is going forward, the Welsh boy tackles him waist high... natural momentum will take the French boy over the Welsh guys shoulder, loses his footing, then goes down, not terribly hard it must be said... seemed like a good tackle to me, but if the laws state otherwise?
I don't know.
Anyway, Tim Tebow to start for the Bronco's next week... any thoughts on that anyone?

I was high up in one of the temporary stands, surrounded largely by New Zealanders supporting Wales. From a distance it was difficult to see exactly what had happened, but the conversation went largely like this:

"Great tackle!"

"I think he's been knocked out!"

"Ooh, a fight!"

"A red card? Why's he been sent off?"

At this point the repay is shown.

"Ahh, that's why he's been sent off. Fair enough".

It pains me to say this but it was an understandable red card for an unfortunate offence. The Irishman followed the rules and Sam went off. I didn't like it but there you go. One man down. Wales missed the kicks. James Hook had a nightmare. They were the old Wales. Not the new Wales. But still the heart was there. The passion was there. But something else wasn't. And I'm not just talking about their captain.
Anyway... when does the 6 Nations start?!

I'm old enough to remember Max Boyce and "Blind Irish Referees". And the absurd Irish whinging about Thierry Henry in the football a couple of years ago is too recent to forget. But most of the fevered reporting of this Warburton episode in papers where the journos should know better is disquieting.

Wales have been a revelation in this RWC. We may well be in for another golden period of glorious valleys rugby to rival Barry John, JPR, et al. And that would be wonderful as long as Ireland get to beat them once in a blue moon. I'm not enough of an expert (or indeed any kind of an expert) to opine on the laws, other than to say that having looked at it oodles of times, it seems to fall within the "dropping from a height" section of the rule. It's reasonably arguable at the least that a red card was warranted. I'm sure most Welsh readers will vehemently disagree, as I might if the dropper was wearing a green jersey.

However, in years of devout sports-following, I've never been made aware before now of the parentage of the referee. Why is it relevant? Does Wayne Barnes have a Scottish mother? Does Craig Joubert have an Australian granddad? I don't know and it's none of my business. But Alain Rolland is apparently happy (according to the Independent and various scribes in other broadsheets) to give up all professional integrity because (a) his fellow countrymen were tonked by the Taffs last week and (b) his dad is a Frenchman. Would this have arisen if he had a stereotypical Mick name like Seamus O'Mahoney? Then we'd have no idea that he was "half-French".

It's one thing to be disappointed that the palpably better team lost the game (though sympathy has to be tempered by the ineptitude of the fly-halves). It's quite another to vent the resulting spleen by trashing the professional bona fides of the man in the middle. It's one thing to say that he's inept - that's a matter of opinion. It's quite another to say that he's a crook.

It's extraordinary how a sporting set-back can cause otherwise sensible people to lose the run of themselves (an Irishism that Alain's dad wasn't familiar with when he started out).

- most viewers are agreed that it was a dangerous tackle;
- there wasn't much, if any, argument from the players when the red card was brandished and they tend to know what does and what doesn't justify a red;
- the law is clear that "intent" is no mitigation (how on earth does a referee interpret and assess intent anyway?!)
- in arguing that the ref or "the red card" spoilt a RWC semi-final that millions were watching, and ignoring the daft implication that different rules apply in certain games, how about turning it around and saying the player spoilt the game by committing a sending-off offence?

It was a pity because Wales deserve to be in the final. They've trained well, played well, conducted themselves well and been a credit to the game. Instead, a rather mundane French team that lost 2 pool games and is riven by dissent and animosity is now preparing for the biggest game in the world. In sport, as in life, sometimes things don't go the way you think they ought to.

France always have one good performance in them. Maybe it'll be in the final against the team that often chokes when they play Les Bleus?

...to win it for Wales, I bet the French would have been furious. It was never a penalty, the Welsh player was holding on to the ball.

Having said that the manner of the French victory was so depressing. They should have thrashed Wales with an extra man and especially as Wales were without their key scrummaging prop and best fly-half.

The French should have engineering more scrums and mauls and spread the ball, but they kicked too much and their passing was terrible - too high or low.

I think Rolland's parentage is irrelevant and he's usually a decent ref, but he had a terrible game. People can quote regulations all they like but Clerc wasn't dropped from a great height or head first. It was never a red.

The disciplinary hearing found him guilty of a dangerous tackle and rated it mid-range on the scale of seriousness with a starting penalty of a 6-week ban. This has been reduced to 3-weeks given the player's good character and previous record.

was away for the weekend and saw it tonight.

The argument, in mitigation, that he landed on his back rather than his head is ludicrous. He landed on the upper part of his back with his body bent over his head.

Could have broken his neck / spine.

and a clear red card regardless of the 'intent', regardless of Warburton's impeccable record and regardless of the fact that it was the 10th minute of a RWC semi-final. Maybe the penny will now drop with players that you can't make this kind of tackle. I can't for a moment understand the comments about Rolland's father - what a bizarre angle to take! But I suppose it makes a change from the usual comments regarding a ref's parentage. And of course, as Red Umpire pointed out above, Wales left an unbelievable 17 points on the pitch, that's really why they lost.

Warburton (who went to my lad's school; yep, I'm a Taff) hit the relatively light Le Clerc too hard because he was massively pumped up. So hard he couldn't hold him when he had to because the Frenchman was stunned & fell limply As captain, Warburton's there to provide a lead but be responsible - in RU the captain's a sort of Head Boy; he forgot that, forgot everything, in the heat of battle.
The red called it right, by the letter, which this ref always does. The players know he's a picky sod & you tread carefully with him. I was as vocal as the rest yesterday, but in the cold light of sobriety I have to admit the card was inevitable - it must have looked and sounded really bad at close quarters.
And ultimately it didn't massively affect the game as a contest - Wales had all the ball & couldn't put away a piss-poor, unfit French team with the boot because, unbelievably, both our massively experienced outside halves had an off-day.
Now, does anyone know how I can watch the Final in the US?

Putting aside the debate re the red card, apparently correct but harsh in the context of the game, the penalty Rolland awarded to Wales that Halfpenny (only just) missed, looked generous in the extreme. Welsh player off his feet clearly playing the ball (manoevering it to avoid French possession).

If the kick had gone over I am sure there would be some French calls re poor decision making of the Ref.

I dearly wanted Wales to win but inaccuracy with the boot has cost them dear.

but I have no idea about many of the rules and laws (offside? Not a clue) so that's why I listen to the paid employees of the broadcasters who provide expert analysis.
I thought it was a red card, they ALL said it was a bad decision so I believed them instead. They should know after all. Now I know that they were ALL wrong. What is going to happen to them? If I did my job that badly, that unprofessionally I wouldn't have a job for too much longer.
ITV yet again balls up their sports coverage. Shameful display by all concerned and I will be watching the final with the sound off just like I do any ITV football coverage. Seems as though I may know the rules a little better than I thought

Rolland is widely regarded as one of if not the best ref out there. Players respect the fact that he is one of the few refs to have played the game at the highest level.
For all the reasons set out by more expert people than me it was clearly a red card.
This rubbish about the decision ruining the match etc is arrant nonsense. The refs job is to ensure the game is conducted in line with the laws of the game no more no less. If a game is 'marred' by a sending off or excessive penalties that is the fault of the players/teams who are not abiding by the rules plain and simple.
It is crucial that laws are implemented at the very top of the game for the protection not just of the players in those matches but by example of players in every amateur or schoolboy game across the world. The consequences are too grave and there have unfortunately been too many tragic incidents over the years. And they are what really 'marr' the sport.

OK, Wales deserved to win on the balance of play and had several chances to win the game but it's sour grapes to go around saying you would have won if it hadn't been for the sending off.

Wales might still have lost with 15 men just as South Africa (with 15 men) lost to Australia after totally dominating much of the game. You can't say for sure Wales would have scored more than one try. All you can say is that their chances of winning would have been increased by maybe 7 or 8%.

I wouldn't say Warburton's tackle was stupid but it was ill-advised. He hit Clerc hard and after that he should have driven forward as low as he could and kept hold of him. He didn't have to lift him up, tip him over and drop him like he did. It was asking for trouble.

And it wasn't the ref's fault that Steve Jones missed his conversion attempt (perhaps Mike Phillips could have risked trying to get closer to the posts before touching down) and it wasn't the ref's fault that Halfpenny missed his penalty from the halfway line either. (Robert Hook also missed a couple I think.) In fact, it looked like Rolland had given Wales the chance to win the game when it should have been a penalty for France. So Wales lost because they didn't take what chances they had, not because they had their key player sent off.

If Wales had won, they wouldn't have been complaining about the red card.

It's not easy but sometimes you just have to lose with grace and good sportsmanship and admit that you didn't take your chances and blew it. It's always easy to find scapegoats.