Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

Sir Steve Hansen isn't sure 'why the big onus is on red cards' in fight for player safety

By Ned Lester
(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

All Blacks coaching great Sir Steve Hansen has offered his opinion on ways to improve the disciplinary system in rugby after Freddie Steward’s red card sparked outrage and debate throughout the rugby community.

ADVERTISEMENT

A red card to the English fullback in the final round of the Six Nations left the visiting English down a man for the second half, the sin-binning dampening the competitive tension of a hard-fought and championship-deciding match.

The card itself was controversial, while the play saw direct contact from Steward’s shoulder to Ireland fullback Hugo Keenan’s head, there were significant mitigating factors and an independent disciplinary committee, upon review, rescinded the red, claiming a yellow would have been appropriate.

Video Spacer

Video Spacer

The mistake from referee Jaco Peyper has led to debate over the direction the game is taking, with fears an unwarranted red card could ruin competition in the upcoming World Cup.

“I’ve got my own personal opinions,” Sir Steve Hansen told The Platform. “If it’s a punch or a kick or a swinging arm that’s really deliberate foul play then you should be off, but you don’t really see too many of those these days and what we’re seeing now is a lot of collision red cards, and they’re not intentional.

“I like the idea of saying ‘right well you’re off’ if it was your fault, for 20 minutes. However, sometimes I think the guy that gets sent off is actually the guy that got injured so I just don’t see how you’d want to commit foul play against yourself.

“There’s still room for a lot of improvement on it. I know we’ve got to be concerned about the head injuries but I’m just not convinced that giving red cards out willy-nilly for what are clearly accidents with no intent, we’re just putting the onus on the referee, or now the TMO gets to make that decision and is he qualified to make that decision? Who knows.

ADVERTISEMENT

“But, are we doing it because later on, we want to be able to say in court cases ‘well, at least we gave them red cards’?”

Related

Hansen says the emphasis on red cards as the solution to head injuries in rugby is misplaced and resources going into the issue would be better utilised elsewhere.

“I’m just not sure why the big onus is on red cards, I’d like to see us spend more money educating people to tackle better, more money spent on people being educated to anticipate what’s going to happen in front of them a lot quicker and I think we’d solve some of the problems.

“I think we could change a couple of rules, like the height of the ruck, how do you remove a guy that’s over the ball if he’s got his head tucked down? Either you can’t or you can so let’s bring the height of the ruck up again and see what we can do there.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I know World Rugby are trying their hardest at getting it right but I still think we can do more.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

B
Bull Shark 2 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
FEATURE
FEATURE Storm clouds gather over Biarritz with owner poised to bail out Storm clouds gather over Biarritz with owner poised to bail out
Search