Rugby World Cup 2019: Australian rugby erupts amid claims skipper was targeted

New footage has emerged of Scott Barrett's red card shoulder hit on Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper - and the Aussies are blowing up.

Broadcaster Fox Sport has released a new camera angle of the 39th-minute tackle that shows the All Blacks lock making direct contact with the back of the Wallabies skippers' head.

Former international Rod Kafer believes the footage backs his claims that the All Blacks intentionally targeted the Australian captain to unsettle the home side. 

Kafer also noted Ardie Savea's roughhouse tactics on Hooper minutes before Barrett's send-off, when the NZ flanker shoved his opponent's head into the ground. 

"This was a deliberate act," Kafer said of Barrett's 'horror hit'.

"Attacking a player's head with a shoulder and elbow in a vulnerable position - no question, it's a red card.

'You go into games trying to unsettle the leaders of an opposition team, it's pretty standard.

"And looking back at the game, it didn't surprise me to see those two illegal acts on the Wallaby captain - it may well have been part of the tactic going into the game."

Pundits have called for a review of  red-card rules. Brumbies assistant coach Laurie Fisher would like to see the offender replaced after 10 minutes to allow a fair contest.

But Kafer, a rugby analyst for Fox Sport, disagrees.

"There aren't that many red cards in test matches," he said. "It has an impact, it's part of the theatre.

"The World Cup gets decided, as it always does, by law. It's pretty clear and easy to adjust to - change your technique or face the consequences."

The All Blacks have added some spice to the simmering tensions, with flanker Sam Cane claiming earlier this week he was the victim of neck rolls at the breakdown last Saturday night.

The Bledisloe Cup will be decided on Saturday night at the Eden Park fortress, where the All Blacks haven't lost since 1994 and the Wallabies haven't won since 1986.

But Scott Barrett will not figure in the equation, after receiving a three-week ban for his actions.  

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