Australia coach Michael Cheika has claimed that referee Craig Joubert was unfairly singled out by World Rugby after making an incorrect call in the closing stages of Sunday's Rugby World Cup quarter-final against Scotland.

Scotland led 34-32 when Joubert whistled for an Australian penalty that Bernard Foley kicked over to seal victory and send Australia through to a semi-final against Argentina.

World Rugby released a statement yesterday evening saying that Joubert was definitely wrong and that a scrum for a knock-on, not a penalty, should have been awarded in the dying moments of the gripping last-eight encounter.

Cheika believes that Joubert has been let down by the organisation and wrongly had the finger pointed at him.

"I genuinely feel for Craig Joubert," PA quotes Cheika as saying. "It's so unfair. No other referee has had this stuff put out there like that and he's a very good referee.

"I would have liked my mates to back me up a little more on the odd occasion, if you know what I mean. I feel for him. We talk about having the right principles in the game and all of that.

"Genuinely I have never seen that before. I am not sure why that decision had to be publicly reviewed and put out there. I really hope his fellow referees stand by him because - well, the fact I'm not allowed to say much about it says it all."

Joubert was not given either of the semi-finals this weekend, with Jerome Garces taking charge of South Africa vs. New Zealand and Wayne Barnes with the whistle for Australia vs. Argentina.