Samoa hit out at 'harsh' ref

Auckland - Samoa captain Mahonri Schwalger thinks referee Nigel Owens was harsh on his team during a spirited 13-5 defeat to South Africa that ended their Rugby World Cup in the pool round on Friday.

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The Samoans were desperate to beat the defending champion Springboks for the first time to end a 16-year quarter-finals drought.

Schwalger said Owens didn't help.

"The ref was pretty harsh on us," he said. "If a few calls had gone our way we would have put some more points on the South Africans.

"The ref has got to be fair for us as well for us to compete in a game like that. I felt like it was one way, but at the end of the day you can't change the result. It's done."