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Wallaby boss Cheika laments replay calls

Twickenham - Australia coach Michael Cheika called into question rugby union's replay procedure after several decisions went against his side in a 30-6 defeat by England on Saturday.

With England just 3-0 ahead, Australia were denied a 27th-minute try on review after Wallaby captain Michael Hooper was ruled to have been in front of the kicker at Twickenham.

Australia were still in the game at 13-6 behind when what appeared to a try by wing Marika Koroibete was eventually disallowed for a block by replacement hooker Stephen Moore.

To make matters worse for the Wallabies, the 54th-minute try that England's Elliot Daly scored to give the hosts a decisive 11-3 lead was awarded after numerous replays failed to determine if the kick by scrumhalf Ben Youngs that the Wasps wing re-gathered had first gone into touch.

There was a lengthy delay in each case as New Zealand referee Ben O'Keeffe consulted with Irish TV match official Simon McDowell.

"I'm not really ranking them," said Cheika when asked which one of the decisions had hurt Australia the most.

"It's not the Academy Awards. I suppose -- I'm not sure who the TMO was, I probably should've found out his name -- it's interesting that, on the images. I'm just not sure about the process," he said.

"How many replays for one incident? And how many replays for another? I don't know. He probably just makes his own mind up."

Cheika, seething after Wallaby fullback Kurtley Beale was sin-binned on the stroke of half-time, then found himself receiving verbal abuse from the crowd as he made his way from the coaches' box to the dressing room at the interval.

"Is this what rugby has come to? That we're just looking for all of that?," he said.

"There are plenty of fans giving me a gob-full, I can assure you. And it's not nice, not pleasant. But that is the way it goes.

"I know when I walk down the stairs that I'm going to cop abuse."

Daly's score opened the floodgates, with England eventually scoring four tries to nil as they recorded a fifth straight victory over the Wallabies under their Australian coach, Eddie Jones.

For Jones this win, coming just days before Thursday's start of the Ashes Test cricket series in Brisbane, rekindled memories of a celebrated England cricketing triumph 'Down Under', even if his recall was slightly off.

"The only time I've ever seen 5-0 before was in the '71 cricket.

"Do you remember that series? John Snow (the England fast bowler), Australia got absolutely demolished.

"Bill Lawry got dropped as captain, a good Victorian left-hander, and Ian Chappell took over," he added. "It was a resurgence of Australian cricket.

"It's nice to win 5-0 but we're only as good as that game," said Jones.

Yet for once lifelong cricket enthusiast Jones was mistaken -- an England side captained by Ray Illingworth 'only' took the seven-match 1970/71 Ashes 2-0.

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