A great European Cup final last weekend had only one blemish, when the limp attempt to tighten the rules around water-carriers made by World Rugby in 2022 backfired, with Leinster’s South African World Cup winning coach, Jacques Nienaber, bending them.
Parked on the sidelines for the second half, Nienaber was on and off the pitch coaching Leinster by exploiting a loophole left wide open by the world governing body, despite Toulouse complaining to EPCR officials.
The stretching of the water carrier protocols to allow coaches to fulfil the role came to a head when Rassie Erasmus, South Afric...