Referees talk for 80 minutes a match. Then, silence.
Regardless on where you stand on the Owen Farrell Incident, the last 72 hours demonstrate one thing: rugby union revels in confusing its own fans.
“Almost everyone believes that should have been a penalty.”
This is as close as one can get to the definitive word from World Rugby when it comes to that Owen Farrell tackle on Andre Esterhuizen on Saturday at Twickenham. I say as close to because that is a direct quote from a top ranking official who I have chosen not to name because, well, it seems top ranking officials aren’t supposed to discuss these matters.
Well, that’s not entirely true. They can occasionally discuss these things, like when Craig Joubert made a late penalty call against Scotland in the Rugby World Cup which scuppered their semifinal hopes, and the decision was deemed incorrect after the fact. Or like in 2009 when Paddy O’Brien skewered Stuart Dickinson’s refereeing after the All Blacks-Italy scrum fest at the San Siro. Or when World Rugby announced that Glenn Newman had made an error in his decision not to award Wales a try in this year’s Six Nations.
Yet here we are, in the middle of the next week, three days after the fact, and still the debate rages. Was it a legal tackle? Did he try to wrap his arms? Did he make contact with the head? Was it so different to Danny Cipriani’s red card tackle? Can a citing commissioner act independently of the on-field decision? Can he upgrade that decision? Was the on-field decision deemed accurate in the first place? And on and on and on…
Why is it that referees spend 80 minutes a game talking and then fall silent when fans and players and coaches are most desperate for clarity?
It is clarity that is required here, not for any assuaging of jingoistic pride, either. It is not World Rugby’s place to take sides. It is, however, the organisation’s duty to provide consistent application of the laws of the game and to show respect for those who love the game. It is not enough to sit back and let this argument dominate the build up to the most anticipated test match of the year. Some within the organisation may claim that this is all grist for the marketing mill, but it’s not. It’s just wrong.
Angus Gardner is a very good referee by any objective (a keyword to consider) evaluation. He is also a man blessed with enough emotional intelligence to understand he won’t get every decision right. It is likely that, privately, Gardner would have reviewed that game and decided that the tackle should have been penalised. An admission of that would be cold comfort for the Springboks and their fans, but a mea culpa would be both refreshingly open and, one would like to think, appreciated by fans of the game the world over.
This is not a call for referees to explain every decision they make, or do not make, on a rugby field. There are, however, some calls that demand context – big calls in huge games that have massive implications not just for the result, but for the very sport itself. Those calls need to be discussed with fans by officials, and by the custodians of the sport’s integrity. Because, that’s, ya know, like, what adults do.
Nothing will change the fact that England won a test against South Africa 12-11 last Saturday. It’s in the books, on the score sheet, official. And the Springboks should not, and will not, be thinking they lost the game because of one late call. They lost the game mainly because they bottled it. Rassie Erasmus’s tongue-in-cheek tackle practice video is evidence enough that he knows this brouhaha masks the true nature of that performance. South Africa weren’t as good as they could have been. England, for their part, were incredibly brave.
It is that bravery that should be celebrated, and that bravery that should remind us all that this ongoing silence is very weak indeed.
Comments on RugbyPass
Oh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
1 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
1 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
8 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
56 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
8 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
61 Go to comments