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I was going to get into the debate about poor old Paul Warburton, but the posts on that subject were bursting into flames by the time that I got there, but it got me thinking – we’ve had the poor performances by Bryce and that horrible decision by Alain Rolland tonight and we haven’t seen much to commend any of the referees during this tournament, in my view.
I know I’m a bit parochial, but where was Steve Walsh? He had had a pretty good tournament as far as I could tell, and yet a NH ref was allocated to an NH game, so what does that tell us?
Dickinson was totally overlooked for this tournament yet I think he is one of the best in the world, and South Africa has one or two good refs also – the selectors seem to have it all a bit skewed.
On the subject of Roland, I was a ref once, albeit not for very long and at a very low level (much prefer being with the players), but I seem to remember that one of the things that was drummed into us was that we were there to be the invisible man, in the middle. What a huge thing to do, to send off a bloke (23-yers-old and the captain) for a tackle that was not that bad.
Yes, I understand what the laws say, but humanity comes into it, too. Sure, Roland might just have been as adrenaline affected as were the players in the early part of the game, but surely, you could gather your touchies around you, take a breath and ask what is best for the game…couldn’t you? To send off the captain 17 minutes in from the start of the game is nothing short of ludicrous… and please don’t waste my time quoting the “rules” because if you do I know you are not a true Rugby person .. they are the laws and they are there to be interpreted with some flexibility and compassion.
Do these guys really have the best interests of Rugby at heart? Does the fact that he was appointed to tonight’s game mean that he is a likely starter for the final? Let’s hope that the people in charge see this for what it was. God help us if he referees next week.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.