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In contrast, New Zealand captain Sam Cane donned an All Blacks jersey with the number 10 emblazoned with Maradona’s name in the center circle before performing his traditional haka.
Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona. Image: Facebook.com
SYDNEY – Argentina paid an on-field tribute to Diego Maradona on Saturday, with the national rugby team wearing the number 10 on the sleeve of their jerseys after being criticized for not doing enough to honor the late soccer legend.
The gesture in Sydney followed harsh criticism in Argentina after the Pumas wore black armbands during their Tri-Nations clash with New Zealand a week ago, but did nothing more to mark his death.
In contrast, New Zealand captain Sam Cane wore an All Blacks jersey with the number 10 emblazoned with Maradona’s name in the center circle before performing his traditional haka.
Following the backlash, Argentine captain Pablo Matera and the team posted a video online in which he said: “We know that our tribute to Diego caused disappointment, but we wanted to tell you that it was by no means our intention.”
The apology coincided with the resurgence of discriminatory and xenophobic tweets from 2011-2013 by Matera, second-row Guido Petti and replacement hooker Santiago Socino.
Some reports suggested they were dug up in retaliation for their apparent disrespect for Maradona.
The scandal saw Matera stripped of the captaincy and all three players suspended, although in a notable U-turn, their penalties were overturned by the Argentine rugby board on Friday.
Maradona, a rugby fan, died in his sleep this month at just 60 years old, plunging his South American homeland and world soccer into mourning.
While the Wallabies did not pay tribute to Maradona, history was made when the Australian national anthem was sung in an indigenous language for the first time at an international sporting event.
Olivia Fox, a young singer from Sydney, launched “Advance Australia Fair” in the Eora language and in English, with the Wallabies wearing her First Nations jersey.
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