In a recent article in the New Zealand Herald, rugby writer Gregor Paul worries that the NZ$240 million spent on the redo of Eden Park has resulted in a mickey mouse venue which will embarrass New Zealand.
The world expects great sports events to take place in great stadiums, and Paul claims that Eden Park is way below standard and will be a blot on the country’s reputation.
It would be a great shame if this proves to be so, but there’s another threat hanging over the Rugby World Cup that has nothing to do with expensive seats exposed to the wind and rain and that’s the possibility of pedantic, game-wrecking refereeing.
Some of the infractions spotted by various refs during much of this season’s Super Rugby have been completely missed by the fans in the stands as well as by multi-angle cameras covering the action. Why? Because some of these infractions have been illusionary.
Others, if they existed, have been incredibly picky. On the weekend, for example, Bryce Lawrence pinged Tendai Mtawarira for ‘dangerous play’ while Beast was crouched down waiting patiently, endlessly, for Lawrence to issue the command for the scrum to engage.
But it’s during the run of play that one wonders how refs, some clearly out-of-condition, will keep up with the demands of fast, intense international rugby.
They’ll be expected to give decisions on the action twenty metres or more in front of them, and they won’t be able to rely on their touchies all the time.
How can the men on the sidelines help when they have to try to keep up with a Mvovo, a Gear, a Beale, a Clerc, an Ashton, who suddenly snatches up the ball and zooms away?
They can’t.
So who calls something that appears to be a knock-on down the field? Who calls a forward pass when it’s impossible to judge the lateral movement of the ball if you’re not level with the players?
Most worrisome of all is this: will the refs be under orders from the super-authoritarian IRB to police the set pieces with a steely eye and blow up for the slightest infraction?
With jerky stops and starts, scrum re-sets and pull backs from quick taps, much of the world-wide TV audience might just switch away, and all the tragics might end up throwing beer cans at the screen.
It doesn’t have to happen. There are some quality people on the ref panel so let’s hope we get a fair and flowing World Cup. However, some of the men who’ll be in the middle don’t meet with everybody’s approval as old wounds are slow to heal.
Barnes, Walsh, Poite, Clancy, Owens, Joubert, Kaplan, Rolland, Lawrence, and Pearson will all take charge of four matches during the pool phase allowing for a comprehensive review of performances by the Selection Committee. A total of 10 of the 21 Match Officials will be retained for the knock-out stages.
So go ahead and name your poison, Roarers, with reasons for shuddering at the thought of your team being at the mercy of…
wardad
Guest
barnes vs nz 2007 oops france vs nz penalty count 10-2 nz no penalties 2nd half at all nuff said
Jerry
Guest
Yeah, that Wayne Barnes giving the All Black BOTH of those penalties. What an arse-kisser.
Baldy from Manly
Guest
So long as its neutral referees for all games. Imagine the fall out if a Sth African referee had the final between S.A. v N.Z. The Super 15 next year must return to neutral referees & assistant referees following the send off in S.A. of a Waratah forward on the advice of a S.A. assistant referee to a S.A. referee.
Matthew Skellett
Guest
I sincerely hope we are not going to have another RWC tournament where the refs fall over themselves kissing All-Black arse -Mr O'Brien is a disgrace the way he treated the Fijians in their quarter final against France back in the nineties
captain nemo
Roar Guru
Of course I want the right decision. I have no idea why the decision was over-ruled, or if it was or wasn't a try. I was standing about 20 metres away towards the halfway so I was on the wrong side of the pack, however the ref was standing in the ingoal area so should of had a great view. In fact the ref from the srcum awarded a penalty to Eastwood for Souths back chat. They were pissed at the reversal. Anyhoo, Eastwood were the best team on the day and deserved their win
nuts for rugby
Guest
A ref can change his decision after consulting with a touchie but only for touch and a penalty like you said (for foul play I might add) Ref should've looked to his TJ before awarding the try or otherwise if there was some sort of doubt. What was the reason for cancelling the try? seems weird to give the scrum to souths if they're cancelling the try, was it grounded on a different line or something? Another point, would you rather the right decision be made in the end or they stick to the letter of a law? I think ultimately if you're being objective (and its not your team getting off the hook) you'd rather the right call been made. right?
captain nemo
Roar Guru
speaking of game wrecking refs, on Saturday I was at Foreshaw rugby Park watching Southern Districts play Eastwood. With 5 minutes to full time, one of the souths pigs barged over Eastwoods line off a rolling maul and the ref put his arm in the air and blew a try. Well the Eastwood players blew up at the ref telling him to look at the touchie. Well the ref did that and then cancelled the try awarding a scrum instead to souths. Question, can a ref cancel an awarded try. I have never seen or heard of that as both a player and spectator. Once the try is awarded, shouldn't the touchie keep his mouth shut and support the ref??? The only reverse decision I am aware of that a ref can make is a penalty.... comments please
jokerman
Guest
New Zealand does get the first daylight before anyone in the world....I would assume Australia second. This is unlikely to be a coincidence. The two safest places on the planet.
jokerman
Guest
Each team should have 1 or 2 lives, (I’m not talking about past lives here…You have all had more than one or two. )where they can challenge a ref’s decision. They get one free pass to do so, if that decision is correct they get one more. It goes to the TMO who gives the decision.. A few people (Only a few!) on Roar will complain about the interruption it would put into a game, and would rather moan here about the ref in this forum. Not quite taking responsibility though is it? Complaining without a solution. Tennis has it, so does Cricket. You could say it has enhanced the game, as a spectacle also, as there is some strategy involved as to when to challenge. I feel this is where the game should evolve to.
nuts for rugby
Guest
Leaving aside the fact that some of the refs shouldn't be anywhere near the World Cup e.g. Clancy, B Lawrence and Poite. Pearson can be added there but mostly because if you look at the two high class quality refs missing out (Dickinson and M. Lawrence) and you see their ages which I assume is part of the reason why they are being left out and leaving all the other ridiculous political factors aside as to why Dickinson isn't there, taking Pearson on for his first world cup as the oldest referee there seems stupid. However thanks to various factors they are which hopefully will only affect some pool games and not the final stages. To that end: Barnes or Joubert, preferably the latter, should do the final, hands down no arguments. Forget all the crap against Barnes from the last world cup for the kiwis, he is a very sound referee who isn't pedantic like many of the other northern hemisphere referees and can actually handle the more expansive rugby played by the 3N's teams, I hope this is why he is doing a 3N's game this year to set him up for a high ranked WC game. Joubert hasn't had as good a year as he did last year but will step up for the WC and Tests coming up after his semi this week. Both of them are fit, have good interpretations and are able to let a game flow freely. Walsh (if recovered from his injury), Owens and Kaplan (yes Kaplan, particularly with this bunch of other referees) come in after that and depending on form, 2 of them should fill out the rest of the knockout games between them and the top 2. I hope the IRB doesn't tell them to be too pedantic at scrum time and just apply the laws as they have been during this years Super tournament and parts of the 6N's with a little less pedanticness around scrum time. If political factors take control of these appointments and not how competent refs are, Expect to see B.Lawrence and Rolland in the mix, I just hope they don't get any more than a QF and not at the expense of a Joubert or Barnes. Then the rest is up to the teams to avoid a repeat of '07!
Jamesb
Guest
Yes.
The Bush
Roar Guru
No one will be watching anyway because New Zealand is in an awkward time-slot!