Rejected petition An inquiry into the ethical conduct of Alain Rowland in the Rugby World Cup

IRB Referee Alain Rowland, made an unpopular decision in the Reguby World Cup 2011 game between Wales and France that led to the Wales captain Sam Warburton being red-carded. The BBC Scrum V programme found he acted consistently with how he did in past matches, but many other referees would have made a different decision.

Social media outlets were flooded with fans pointing out that M. Rowland's father was French. This is clear evidence of a "perceived conflict of interest" in M. Rowland taking part in the game, however professional he is.

The petition signers would like an inquiry to find out whether M. Rowland or the IRB broke IRB or other international sports ethics rules by him taking part in the game due to his 'perceived' conflict of interest. We want to know whether the outcome of the match would have been different if a different referee without any 'perceived' conflict of interest had been taking part instead.