Argentina head coach Felipe Contepomi accuses 'bully' Tom Curry of giving him 'a smack' in the tunnel after England clash
Updated 24/11/2025 at 14:14 GMT
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Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi has accused England flanker Tom Curry of giving him "a smack" in the tunnel after their Quilter Nations Series clash at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, calling him a "bully" following the encounter. The encounter took place after Argentina fell to a 27-23 defeat in west London. The victory means England have now won all four of their QNS matches this autumn.
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Argentina head coach Felipe Contepomi called Tom Curry a "bully" and accused the flanker of giving him "a smack" following Argentina’s 27-23 defeat against England.
Steve Borthwick’s side were 17-3 up at half-time of the Quilter Nations Series clash thanks to tries from Max Ojomoh and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.
However, Justo Piccardo and Rodrigo Isgro crossed the whitewash either side of a Henry Slade score to set up a tense finish at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
Curry replaced Sam Underhill in the 51st minute, and Contepomi accused the Sale Sharks star of causing a commotion in the tunnel after full-time.
"Curry, let me say, it’s not only that because it’s probably part of his nature to bully people," he said.
"He came off in the tunnel and he gave me a little smack.
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"I’m 48, he gave me a smack. I don’t know how you say it, a push? Maybe it’s his nature, I don’t know.
"But those are the guys we are rewarding and we praise, so maybe that’s where we want rugby to go, I don’t know.
"I don’t know how old he is, 27? I’m 48 and he comes and just hits. Luckily, there are probably cameras there, so I’ll show it and I’ll say.
"Maybe they’ll see it as nothing, no incident."
Argentina full-back Juan Cruz Mallia was tackled by Curry during the closing stages of the Quilter Nations Series clash.
The incident appears to have been what sparked the confrontation between the England international and the Argentina coach.
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Contepomi subsequently accused Curry of "breaking" Cruz Mallia’s knee during their exchange in the Twickenham tunnel.
"I was standing there, he was coming in, he wanted to say hi to one of our coaches because we were upset," he said.
"He was reckless and broke our player’s knee. I know it’s rugby, but if we don’t look after each other in rugby, it could be dangerous.
"When he came, I said, ‘Man, you broke our player’s knee’.
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"He said ‘f*** off’ and pushed me like that. Maybe that’s the way he is, I don’t know him. Now, I would say, I’m not happy with the situation.
"They’re breaking someone’s knee, I think you need to be at least humble enough and respectful to say, ‘Sorry, I did something wrong’.
"But he went the opposite. So maybe it’s his way of being a bully? If we want bullies in this game, good on them."
Watch and stream every game of the Quilter Nations Series live on TNT Sports and discovery+
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