French referee Mathieu Raynal has no regrets over the decision to call Wallabies first-five Bernard Foley for time-wasting, leading to the All Blacks' victory in this month's opening Bledisloe Cup test.
In the dying moments of the Melbourne test, leading 37-34, the Wallabies were awarded a penalty inside their own 22, with Foley's clearing kick to all but assure victory.
But in one last twist, Raynal called Foley for time-wasting, and the resulting scrum saw the All Blacks score in the corner to take a 39-37 victory and retain the Bledisloe Cup.
Conjecture surrounded the decision, with Raynal's decision earning him the ire of Australia, as acting captain Nic White even told the 41-year-old he "just cost us the Rugby Championship".
However, Raynal also found support from the likes of veteran referee Nigel Owens, who backed the decision.
Raynal acted as an assistant referee for the second Bledisloe Cup test played at Auckland last weekend, as the All Blacks sealed the Rugby Championship with a 40-14 victory.
Named as French rugby's Referee of the Year, Raynal spoke publicly about the incident for the first time.
"I take total responsibility for what I did, 100 percent," Raynal said. "I had a necessary reason for making the decision, even if it was a strong one, which caused people to talk.
"I try to do what is the most fair - that's at the heart of my job. Sometimes it creates tensions, frustrations, arguments, but I take responsibility over what I do."
After the first test, Foley insisted he had never intended to waste time, but Raynal asserts Foley was given several warnings.
"I told a player five times to kick the ball to touch," Raynal continued. "I couldn't do otherwise.
"It's not me who decided to make the decision, it was the player who forced me to make it."
The backlash against Raynal was so harsh, the referee also reveals he was forced to stay away from social media to avoid the barrage of criticism that came his way.
"To be honest, I deleted newspaper and social media applications," Raynal added. "I had just Candy Crush and the clock on my phone - I didn't follow what happened.
"To keep my head, it was the best thing to do to keep focused on the second match. My job finishes once I leave the field."
