/ 20 October 1999

MASO SLAMS CITING SYSTEM

FRENCH team manager Jo Maso on Tuesday slammed the citings system being used at the World Cup and hinted at an Anglo-Saxon conspiracy. Maso claimed justice was “operating at two different speeds” for players in the tournament. He pointed out that England flanker Lawrence Dallaglio punched winger Jonah Lomu in the head in the match against New Zealand without any action being taken. “There have been 17 citings since the start of the tournament – and we have two,” Maso said. “We cannot beat ourselves up thinking about it.” French lock Fabien Pelous and prop Christian Califano face disciplinary hearings in London on Tuesday night after incidents in their team’s win over Fiji in Toulouse on Saturday. World Cup officials said Califano had been cited for head-butting, while Pelous has been accused of stomping.