Source: Radio New Zealand
Caleb Tangitau was knocked out cold against the Blues. Photosport
Having just sparked a superb try to bring his side back in the contest before halftime, Caleb Tangitau lay on the Eden Park deck, unconscious.
He had just copped a direct shoulder to the head, and was forced to sit out the rest of a classic contest.
While the Highlanders lost their biggest strike weapon for the rest of the game, the Blues were without the perpetrator, Zarn Sullivan, for just 10 minutes.
They went on to win a thriller 47-40.
The unbalanced scales left Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph questioning the call.
“Moments like that really count. We get a guy knocked out, so what’s a red card? If that’s not a red card what is? Last week it was a tip tackle, so I was like ‘what is a yellow card?’ And this week it’s ‘what is a red card?’ Really it’s just getting my head around these decisions that are working against us but I’ll be asking those questions.”
In a chaotic final few minutes, the Highlanders very nearly pulled off a miraculous comeback.
“That’s the frustrating part, Caleb has consistently been one of our top three players, losing that player for 40 minutes isn’t good for a team on the ladder where we are.”
Joseph believes that Tangitau would have thrived during the broken and frantic nature of the last 10 minutes.
‘We need everybody playing the whole 80 minutes. He can change a game, that moment he created that try came from nothing and look at this game how it ended up, that sort of rugby environment would have been perfect for a player like Tangitau.”
No word yet on how Tangitau is doing.
“It didn’t look good.”
Joseph did express great admiration for how his men came back from 47-26 down with less than 10 minutes to play.
“They are gritty men, to find a way to keep on going is really important for a rugby team.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
