All Blacks captain Sam Cane has been sensationally red-carded in the Rugby World Cup 2023 Final against South Africa.
Cane was sent off after a high tackle on Jesse Kriel in the 29th minute of the decider at the Stade de France.
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The New Zealanders struggled with discipline to start the game, with Shannon Frizell yellow-carded for a dangerous cleanout on Bongi Mbonambi.
The flanker collected him around the legs and twisted him back, drawing the ire of the TMO.
Whilst he would eventually come back, Cane was not as lucky in a key moment of the Final.
The flashpoint came when Kriel took the line and stepped back inside to the flanker, who collect him high.
It initially went without punishment but ended up drawing the attention of referee Wayne Barnes on the advice of the TMO.
Barnes deemed the decision met the yellow card threshold, with the tackle upgraded to a red minutes later.
"A high degree of danger – no clear and obvious mitigation," was the ruling from TMO Tom Foley.
Cane becomes the first player to ever be red-carded in a men's World Cup Final.
His counterpart Siya Kolisi was yellow carded for a tackle just after the half on Ardie Savea, with mitigating factors preventing it from being upgraded
Before this game, All Black Ben Smith was the only player previously to be carded, issued a yellow during the 2015 Final against the Wallabies.
The All Blacks fought back despite the red card but just fell short as South Africa took out the World Cup 12-11.
