Rugby rage: Michael Cheika furious as Wallabies suffer record loss to England

He raged, he swore, he sarcastically applauded the match officials. He even became entangled in a verbal spat with an England fan.

If it was hard to take your eyes off the England-Australia rugby test at Twickenham on Saturday, the same could be said about Wallabies coach Michael Cheika’s all-action performance up in the stands.

England coach Eddie Jones grabbed the headlines – and even earned a rebuke from his 93-year-old mother – for a foul-mouthed tirade during his team’s scrappy 21-8 win over Argentina last weekend. He vowed to be on his best behaviour against Australia, and he was.

Instead, Cheika took centre-stage.

Never one to hide his emotions, Cheika unleashed a full array of them during a game in which Australia failed to get the rub of the green when it came to refereeing and TMO decisions and lost by a record 30-6.

“At the end of the day, that’s my own way of dealing with stuff,” Cheika said. “I like to get it out and get on with it. I’ve been able to do it and manage it. That’s my way.”

Cheika sarcastically laughed out loud and applauded when Australia had a try by captain Michael Hooper disallowed for offside midway through the first half.