Rugby: Butchered anthem angers Boks

South Africa's embassy in Paris denied any role in choosing the singer who sang the national anthem badly before the Springboks played France in a rugby test match.

South Africa's coach and players were furious as the singer Ras Dumisani, who is South African, botched the words and struggled to reach the right notes before the Springboks' 20-13 loss to France in Toulouse on Friday.

Responding to media reports that it recommended Dumisani to the French rugby federation, the embassy said it was not involved in the decision to choose Dumisani.

After the defeat, South Africa coach Peter de Villiers, lock Victor Matfield and first five-eighths Morne Steyn all expressed their disappointment at the rendition of their anthem.