World Cup man of the match switch after ridicule

Some strange awards for the man of the match at the World Cup has prompted a rethink over how it is decided, organisers said Monday.

Alarm bells rang after England's Joe Launchbury won what he termed an 'embarrassing' award in the 33-13 hammering by Australia when Bernard Foley had scored 28 points and Uruguay's Agustin Ormaechea was sent off minutes after being named in his game against Fiji.

The existing voting system sees a shortlist of three players selected by the tournament's world feed radio early in the second half before fans choose their preferred choice on social media.

However, there will a new system for the quarter-finals this Saturday.

"There is a rethink happening because there have been a few challenges," head of Rugby World Cup Alan Gilpin said.

"Any man-of-the-match scenario where you have a public vote and that public vote takes place at a particular point in the game leads to some anomalies.

"We saw that with the Uruguay player who received a red card shortly after being named man of the match and of course the Launchbury situation.

"We're looking at that now before the knockout stage and the plan is for the change to be made. We're adjusting the timing and the way the voting takes place."

Source: AFP