'They deserve a bit of a thanks': Officiating criticism-free after ABs loss
A week after an all-time classic Test match between the All Blacks and Springboks, the two great rivals have once again played out a thriller with the Boks winning 31-29.
Returning to the Gold Coast, the reigning World Champions reversed last weekend’s result where Jordie Barrett scored a late winner, with Elton Jantjies scoring a penalty from in front after the siren to win the Test.
It was another tense contest between the two sides, with the All Blacks looking to be in control with less than a minute to play.
Captain Ardie Savea broke off the back of the scrum before the All Blacks appeared to settle in attack, before Springboks number eight Dane Vermuelen won a crucial penalty with 13 seconds on the clock after NZ reserve hooker Asafo Aumua sealed off an All Blacks carry.
But despite the Test match being potentially one of the best-ever, some controversial referring decisions were a talking point both during and following the Test match.
Commentating for Stan Sport, former All Black flyhalf Andrew Mehrtens called out one contentious decision by referee Matthew Carley, before joking about his “less than objective” point of view.
“No that was never released,” Mehrtens said 38 minutes into the Test. “Beauden Barrett never had the chance to play that from the tackler. That’s a bad call.”
Then, later in the 55th minute, Springbok’s winger Makazole Mapimpi appeared to be offside from an Elton Jantjies bomb inside the All Blacks half.
After Springboks captain Siya Kolisi went down injured, the former All Blacks and Crusaders pivot once again shared his opinions on the call – or lack thereof.
“But at the risk of sounding like a winging Kiwi, Tim Horan, and this is the end of it…Mapimpi was about five-metres offside from that high ball going up. Fairly clear to everyone,” Mehrtens said on Stan Sport.
The Springboks have played everyone – the All Blacks included – like fiddles. #RSAvNZL #Springboks #AllBlackshttps://t.co/HTAZjKjfyl
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 3, 2021
“They’re playing well the Springboks and they’re getting the rub of the green at the moment because they are going forward.”
Two-time Rugby World Cup winning Wallaby Tim Horan agreed with Mehrtens on that particular call: “I was just about to say that Mapimpi, it was probably two or three metres offside, and was effective when the All Blacks spilt the ball.”
The All Blacks also had their share of calls go their way at times, with Brad Weber scoring a try late in the first-half after what looked like a knock-on from loosehead prop Joe Moody.
The All Blacks did well to defuse a Springboks lineout five metres out from the try-line, with Scott Barrett slapping the ball down to Moody who couldn’t control it. Instead, the ball bounced off him and into Weber, who did well to score.
But in a Test match which is as tight as it was, every decision had an impact on the result. All Blacks captain Ardie Savea told the media that the refereeing “is what it is.”
“I have my own opinions but that’s the refs call at the end of the day,” Savea said. “I wish I could go back and change the calls but the ref made the call and we just had to kind of adapt to it.
“We were well aware of what, around our breakdown and around staying on our feet, not sealing off. But we didn’t execute that skillset in those last couple of minutes so that’s just on us.
“We got to take the referee out of the game but we didn’t tonight. It is what it is and we just got to sort out our breakdown and be smart around that area.”
Coach Ian Foster offered a different perspective on the referring performances by Matthew Carley on Saturday, and Luke Pearce the week before.
For the first time since the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks have had Northern Hemisphere referees officiate their Tests.
There were some exceptional performances in the All Blacks' loss to the Springboks… And thenthere were some less than savoury showings. #RSAvNZL #AllBlacks #Springbokshttps://t.co/WMdO6dDLSm
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 2, 2021
Foster thanked Carley and Pearce for their efforts, and mentioned how having the two Englishman in charge of tests “will be good for us.”
“Just to add to [what Savea said], a little bit different but it’s actually a thank you to Luke Pearce and Matthew Carley for coming down,” Foster said after the 31-29 loss.
“Having a couple of Northern Hemisphere referees down here has been important for the integrity of the tournament.
“I know it’s their job but they’ve still said yes to the option to come down here and again, they’ve been living in isolation as well.
“I think they deserve a bit of a thanks and I think it’s good for us because we’ve had a year and a half not being ref’d by Northern Hemisphere referees so I think the experience will be good for us.”
The All Blacks are now set to head North to take on teams from the Northern Hemisphere. Their first stop in their end of year tour is the United States in Washington on October 23.
Comments on RugbyPass
Definitely sound read everybodyexpects immediate results these days, I don't think any team would travel well at all having lost three of the most important game changers in the game,compiled with the massive injury list they are now carrying, good to see a different more in depth perspective of a coaches history.
3 Go to commentsSinckler is a really big loss for English rugby.
1 Go to commentsThanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause
11 Go to commentsNo way. If you are trying to picture New Zealand rugby with an All Blacks mindset, there have been two factors instrumental to the decline of NZ rugby to date. Those are the horror that the Blues have become and, probably more so, the fixture that the Crusaders became. I don’t think it was healthy to have one team so dominant for so long, both for lack of proper representation of players from outside that environment and on the over reliance on players from within it. If you are another international side, like Ireland for example, sure. You can copy paste something succinct from one level to the next and experience a huge increase in standards, but ultimately you will not be maximizing it, which is what you need to perform to the level the ABs do. Added to that is the apathy that develops in the whole game as a result of one sides dominance. NZ, Super, and Championship rugby should all experience a boom as a result of things balancing out. That said, there is a lot of bad news happening in NZ rugby recently, and I’m not sure the game can be handled well enough here to postpone the always-there feeling of inevitable decline of rugby.
11 Go to commentsNo SA supporter miss Super Rugby - a product that is experiencing significant head wind in ANZ - the competition from rival codes are intense, match attendance figures are at a historical low and the negativity of commentators such as Kirwan and Wilson have accelerated the downward spiral in NZ. After the next RWC in 2027 sponsors will follow Qantas and start leaving in droves.
2 Go to commentsLike others, I am not seeing the connection between this edition of the Crusaders and the All Blacks future prospects under Razor. I think the analysis of the Crusaders attack recently is helpful because Razor and his coaching team used to be able to slot new guys in to their systems and see them succeed. Several of Razor’s coaches are still there so it would be surprising if the current attack and set piece has been overhauled to a great extent - but based on that analysis, it may have been. Whether it is too many new guys due to injuries or retirement or a failure of current Crusaders systems is the main question to be answered imo. It doesn’t seem relevant for the ABs.
11 Go to commentsharry potter is set in stone. he creates stability and finishes well. exactly what schmidt likes. he’s the ben smith of australian rugby. i think it could quite easily be potter toole and kellaway for the foreseeable future.
5 Go to commentsThis is short sighted from Clayton if you ask me, smacks of too much preseason planning and no adaptability. What if DMac is out for a must win match, are they still only going to bring their best first five and playmaker on late in the game? Trusting the game to someone who wasn’t even part of planning (they would have had Trask pinned in as Jacomb preseason). Perhaps if the Crusaders were better they would not have done this, but either way imo you take this opportunity to play a guy you might need starting in a final rather than having their 12th game getting comfortable coming off the bench.
1 Go to commentsThanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.
21 Go to commentsWhat a load of bollocks. The author has forgotten to mention the fact that the Crusaders have a huge injury toll with top world class players out. Not to mention the fact that they are obviously in a transition period. No this will not spark a slow death for NZ rugby, but it does mean there will be a new Super Rugby champion. Anyone who knows anything about NZ rugby knows that there is some serious talent here, it just isn’t all at the Crusaders.
11 Go to commentsI wouldn’t spend the time on Nawaqanitawase! No point in having him filling in a jersey when he’s committed to leave Union. Give the jersey to a young prospect who will be here in the future.
5 Go to commentsIt was a pleasure to watch those guys playing with such confidence. That trio can all be infuriating for different reasons and I can see why Jones might have decided against them. No way to justify leaving Ikitau out though. Jorgensen and him were both scheduled to return at the same time. Only one of them plays for Randwick and has a dad who is great mates with the national coach though.
53 Go to commentsBrayden Iose and Peter Lakai are very exciting Super Rugby players but are too short and too light to ever be a Test 8 vs South Africa, France, Ireland, and England, Lakai could potentially be a Test player at 7 if he is allowed to focus on 7 for Hurricanes.
7 Go to commentsPencils “Thomas du Toit” into possible 2027 Bok squad.
1 Go to commentsDon’t see why Harrison makes the bench. Jones can play at 10 if needed, and there is a good case for starting her there to begin with if testing combinations. That would leave room for Sing on the bench
1 Go to commentsWhat a load of old bull!
1 Go to commentsOf 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 commentsIrish Rugby CEO be texting Andy Farrell “Andy, i found our next Kiwi Irishman”
5 Go to commentsI certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
2 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
2 Go to comments