England have been told to provide CCTV footage of the alleged tunnel bust-up between Tom Curry and Felipe Contepomi after Argentina lodged a formal complaint and demanded an investigation into the incident.
It is understood that Six Nations Rugby – which organises the autumn Tests – has asked for England to provide footage as well as a formal statement before deciding whether to begin disciplinary proceedings. The Rugby Football Union is also expected to provide any other relevant video captured of the incident.
In an extraordinary press conference after England’s 27-23 victory on Sunday, Contepomi described Curry as a “bully” and accused the flanker of shoving him in the tunnel and telling him to “fuck off”. Contepomi also claimed Curry had “broken” the knee of Juan Cruz Mallía with a “reckless” tackle in the 75th minute – the incident that sparked the post-match bad blood.
The Argentina head coach said “there are probably cameras there” and the Six Nations will wait to review the footage provided by England and assess their statement before determining whether further action is warranted. On Monday, Argentina also confirmed that Mallía has suffered a “traumatic” torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee as a result of Curry’s tackle.
Argentina players were incensed with Curry – who was only penalised for the tackle – and surrounded him on the pitch after the match. The bad feeling spilled over into the tunnel with Contepomi saying: “It is part of [Curry’s] nature to bully people. But he came off in the tunnel and he gave me a little smack. I’m 48. [It was] not a smack, a push, a hit here on the chest. So maybe it is his nature, I don’t know. Probably those are the guys we are rewarding and we praise. Maybe that’s where we want rugby to go, I don’t know.
“How old is he, 27? He is strong and I am 48 and he comes and just shoves me. Luckily, there are probably cameras there … Richard Hill was there so you can ask him.
“I was standing there [in the tunnel] and he was coming and wanted to say hi to one of our coaches but we said no because we were upset. He was reckless and broke our player’s knee. I know it is rugby, but if we don’t look after each other in rugby, it could be dangerous.
“He was coming [into the tunnel] and [we] said: ‘Mate, you broke his knee,’ and he said: ‘Fuck off,’ and pushed me like that. Maybe that is the way he is, I don’t know him. I am not happy with the situation. After breaking someone’s knee, you need to be at least humble enough and respectful to say: ‘Sorry I did something wrong,’ but he went the opposite [way].
“Maybe it is his way of being a bully. If we want bullies in this game, good on them. It was a late, late tackle, or reckless.”
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England have not publicly addressed the tunnel fracas but Steve Borthwick was quick to come to the defence of Curry, who also found himself in the eye of a storm during the 2023 World Cup when he accused South Africa’s Bongi Mbonambi of racially abusing him; the hooker was subsequently cleared by a World Rugby investigation.
The England head coach said: “I think that anybody in this room who has had any contact with Tom Curry knows there’s a character of a man. His character is impeccable. He’s a fantastic team man, a very respectful guy. I think Tom Curry’s character is unquestionable.
“I’m unaware of what happened in the tunnel, but post-game, on the pitch, emotions are always flying high. You see that in almost every game, whether it’s a Test match or club game, or even a national one. That’s part of the past of rugby.”
