"Disappointment, sadness, frustration ... even resentment": the president of Lou castigates the absence of VAR

"The referees weren't helped." The president of Lyon Yann Roubert deplored the absence of video arbitration on Sunday after the defeat of LOU against Bordeaux-Bègles (32-25) in the play-offs of the Top 14. “There is a lot of disappointment, sadness, frustration... even resentment, to be honest. We have the best championship in the world, the best equipped, the one that attracts people in front of the TV. Obviously, many saw that some tests deserved to be reviewed. The only one who didn't have access to it was the referee and that's a shame,” Roubert railed at a press conference. “Referees are not helped by the lack of video. We neither. All the boys, players and staff, deserved better. It is the work of a year which comes to a cruel end. It hurts and it will be difficult to digest,” he continued.

Due to technical issues, there was no video arbitration during the play-off between LOU and UBB. To remedy this, a referee was placed in each in-goal to judge disputed situations. "That doesn't absolve us of our own mistakes. We could have done better, we can be improved. If Bordeaux's first try is not there, as everyone knows, it's not the same match. There are one or two tries that could have been verified on video. It's hard to digest,” said Roubert. Bordeaux-Bègles beat Lyon (32-25) and qualified for the semi-finals of the Top 14, in a week in San Sebastian in Spain, against La Rochelle.