'Like 16 men against us' - Mack Hansen blast officials after Connacht defeat to Leinster

Mack Hansen blasted the officiating following Connacht's 20-12 URC defeat to Leinster, calling some of the decisions "bull***t".

League leaders Leinster led 14-0 at the break but the visitors fought back to get within five points with two minutes to play.

Connacht wing Shane Jennings, and Leinster full-back Jimmy O’Brien were both yellow-carded, while Hansen felt that the officials treated two similar incidents differently.

A high tackle by Josh Ioane on Gus McCarthy was reviewed numerous times by the TMO, and resulted in a penalty only, while Bundee Aki appeared to take a shoulder to the head as Jordie Barrett cleared a ruck.

In an extraordinary post-match press conference, Hansen admitted that the side were frustrated and directed his ire at the officials, all from the IRFU.

Chris Busby was the referee. Peter Martin and Stuart Gaffikin were the assistants, while Mark Patton was the television match official.

"To be honest, it felt like we were getting reffed out of the game for the first 40 minutes, pretty much," said the Ireland winger, whose side conceded 15 penalties to Leinster's 16.

"Then, we were able to do our thing. We were able to show the exciting rugby that we play.

"We're not a team for excuses, but that's what I feel. I feel like the first bit we were getting pressured from what seemed like 16 men against us instead of 15, to be honest to you."

Asked if he agreed with Hansen assessment, Wilkins replied that "we’ll feed it back through the referees’ boss" before Hansen interrupted and asked to expand on his grievances.

"Can I say something real quick about the situation," the 26-year-old Australian native told RTÉ Sport.

"Like, I feel like we get this every week. We never get any calls, ever. I’ve been feeling this