The worst team of Rugby World Cup week one
Roar Pro By ozxile, 15 Sep 2011 ozxile is a Roar Pro
- Tagged:
- Rugby Union, Rugby World Cup, Rugby World Cup 2011, RWC, RWC 2011
It’s not too early to start thinking about candidates for the worst team award. I’ll start by nominating referee Romain Poite (FRA), and his assistants Jérôme Garces (FRA) and Wayne Barnes (ENG) – sorry Wayne, it’s a team award – for the worst team in the tournament in week one.
Until last night’s Samoa versus Namibia match the quality of the officiating at the World Cup was at least good enough to keep it from distracting me from the play. That changed – Poite and his team [except TMO Graham Hughes] were woeful.
By the second half Samoa was pretty much in complete charge of everything. Poite appeared to be following a Pavlovian script that required a whistle in response to something, but only coincidentally with the match. The assistants seem to have lost interest entirely. None of this indifference benefitted either side.
Two examples from the second half should suffice to illustrate. In Samoa’s last goal-line attacking sequence Census Johnston the totally dominant Samoan tight head did enough to his opposite du Toit to get Namibia a ticket (or three) out of jail.
In the first scrum of the sequence at min 67 – no bind/arm up around du Toit’s throat; second scrum at min 68 – no bind/hand on ground; third scrum at min 69 min – hand straight to ground followed by knee. In the third case Johnston was aided by flanker Ofisa Treviranus boring in and lifting du Toit’s leg.
Poite awarded a penalty try on the third scrum. For what? The Namibian scrumhalf was not offside. When the ball came out the Namibian’s defended from onside positions in-goal. So what was the penalty try for? Samoan dominance?
It seems more likely that Poite had decided to award the try before the scrum was set. Garces, the assistant on the near touchline, was simply missing in action.
As if that penalty try was not enough Poite had one more shot. In min 77 Poite issued flanker Rohan Kittshoff a gratuitous warning when he returned from the bin. That was just sad. Poite then managed a complete howler when Namibia’s flyhalf Theuns Kotze scored a try right at his feet less than a minute later.
Apparently he could not believe his eyes. Even the TMO sounded bemused when he responded to the request for confirmation.
Poite and Garces should not be involved here. They are simply not up to the required standard. There is no basis to conclude that the outcome of this match would have changed with a different officiating team. There is basis to say that neither team benefited from the experience.
Samoa is a very talented group of players. A team? Not so much. In the lead up to playing the big fish in their pool they needed a match that required some them to add modicum of discipline and attention to detail to their flair and spontaneity.
They did not get it. Poite did them no favours. The things not called will be repeated. Those things, not their flair and risk taking, will be their likely downfall against both Wales and SA.
Namibia deserved better. They stood up and played themselves proud for 80 minutes. They, like Samoa, would have benefited from a little more structure. They would not have won, but that penalty try should not have been on their ledger, soiling the record of an otherwise worthy effort.
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The Crowd Says (5) | Page 1 of Comments
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- Rugby Union, Rugby World Cup, Rugby World Cup 2011, RWC, RWC 2011
September 15th 2011 @ 7:18am
Moaman said | September 15th 2011 @ 7:18am | Report comment
” Poite issued flanker Rohan Kittshoff a gratuitous warning when he returned from the bin. That was just sad ” Er….may have been lost in translation–but I listened to Poite speak to the returning Kitshoff and I took what he said to mean ” Sorry mate but you just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time,I had issued a general warning and you were next to infringe”.
Agree wholeheartedly with your point about the socalled ARs.What are they actually doing on the sideline?? Sometimes it beggars belief that they can’t be of more…well..assistance.
September 15th 2011 @ 1:54pm
ozxile said | September 15th 2011 @ 1:54pm | Report comment
Moaman, you tell him that when you send him off. He’s just spent ten frustrating minutes in the bin stewing about letting his mates down. If Mssr Poite paid more attention to his real job Kittshoff would not have been coming back from the bin – it was gratuitous.
September 15th 2011 @ 8:06am
Hanzo said | September 15th 2011 @ 8:06am | Report comment
The yellow card handed out to Samoan fullback Williams was a blunder too i thought. Admittedly i have only watched it live but i felt the technique was ok, it wasnt high and although there was no wrapping of the arms that was due to the impact knocking him to the ground before the tackle could be effected.
Thats one of those “oh he is Samoan, it must have been dangerous, Yellow Card!” I hope that the refs don’t go into these matches with preconceived ideas on the island teams.
September 15th 2011 @ 9:52am
RobD said | September 15th 2011 @ 9:52am | Report comment
Let me start by saying that the Samoan’s deserved to win, and by a large margin; and I hope like Hell that they continue to step up, and that their injuries don’t cost them too much against the Welsh.
They did, however, get away with a lot of infringements, including the scrum based ones you mentioned above. I agree with Poite’s call for the TMO, as I think it was a very close call as to whether Kotze grounded the ball on the try-line, or just shy; I’m glad they got the benefit. I think the yellow card was a poor call, but also think the Samoans got away with diving over the ball almost every ruck.
Lastly, I love your call ” Poite appeared to be following a Pavlovian script that required a whistle in response to something, but only coincidentally with the match.” Gold.
September 15th 2011 @ 10:20am
Sledgeandhammer said | September 15th 2011 @ 10:20am | Report comment
Did anyone see the Georgia match? In the first half Georgia had a penalty advantage on 2 occasions, both times they kicked poorly under pressure and Clancy announced “advantage over’. In the second half Scotland had a penalty advantage, it went through a number of phases before being pulled up. Clancy gave Scotland the penalty.
Throughout the match Scotland got away with killing the ball at the breakdown, lying over the ball. It was very cynical stuff, yet Georgia were penalised off the park. It took until the 2nd half the British commentators to realise this, and when they did even they were shocked.
A number of Scotlands’ lineout throws (particularly to the front) didn’t look straight to me either, they went directly to the Scottish player on the outside line, not down the middle.
During a crucial scrum in the 2nd half clancy warned Scotland for pulling back. The next scrum set and Scotland collapsed. Georgia were penalised again much to the mirth of the Scotland prop.
Finally, a Scottish player dropped a ball. The whistle went to stop play and he lashed out in frustration, kicking the Georgian number 7 in the hand and head, which caused an injury stoppage. No penalty ensued.
Clancy must have gone into this game with a preconceived notion, and unfortunately Georgia didn’t get a fair crack.