France coach Marc Lievremont has rejected accusations his side might resort to dirty play in the Rugby World Cup final against the All Blacks.
On Friday, a New Zealand newspaper listed past acts of thuggery by French teams and a warning from former All Blacks captain Wayne `Buck’ Shelford that Les Bleus might resort to cheap shots to unsettle the heavily favoured home side at Eden Park on Sunday.
But Lievremont laughed off suggestions they would employ underhand tactics.
“That’s something I forgot to mention to my players – thanks very much,” said the coach who will take charge of the team for the final time.
“More seriously, I think the French team is one of the most disciplined, if the not the most disciplined team, in this competition.
“One of our aims here is to remain disciplined for this match and at no point on the pitch or off the pitch have we been guilty of any actions of that nature and I don’t think it is possible to criticise the players.”
Shelford said in a column in the NZ Herald that France may resort to desperate measures to save face if the game is getting away from them.
“When you go into the jungle, you never know what is going to happen in dark places. I’m talking about stamping on hands and ankles, those sort of things,” he said.
He urged the All Blacks to take matters into their own hands to sort things out as the referee may not be able to see the offences.
Shelford had his scrotum ripped open and lost four teeth during a Test against France in 1986 dubbed the “Battle of Nantes”.
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