I GOT some stick in a reader’s letter after I expressed my surprise that Nigel Owens had never tried to use a few words of their language when refereeing French sides.
It was therefore interesting to hear Shaun Edwards, now working with the French national side, say that it would have been nice if Irish referee Andrew Brace had made an effort to communicate in their own language with his players during the Autumn Nations Cup final.
Edwards made the point that a player under extreme pressure, listening to the ref, might be marginally disadvantaged if he has to translate what is sa...