'We don't want to be one of those clubs that send loads of clips in to try and influence things'
It has seemingly become a regular occurrence in recent times, rugby teams inviting referees into training to run the rule over their penalty-conceding issues, but Rob Baxter, coach of the double-winning Premiership and European Cup Exeter Chiefs, isn’t a fan of this type of training ground tactic.
England made headlines for how they brought Wayne Barnes and Matthew Carley into training in the lead-up to last weekend’s Guinness Six Nations win over France, while Gallagher Premiership outfit Wasps have also been busy with the RFU referees department, having Christophe Ridley attend their training to try and iron out some kinks in their play.
Beaten in four games on the bounce, Wasps boss Lee Blackett explained at his pre-Newcastle media briefing in midweek what he was up by having a ref in with them for a pep talk. “Last weekend we gave six away in attack, which is something we don’t do,” he said.
“Generally we look after the ball well in terms of our breakdown. We give away very few penalties in that area and we are being hit with six… the week before we get done for three offsides and we had one offside in the last five games so we sorted that out and then something else happened.
“It’s constantly adapting to the referees all the time. We had Christophe Ridley in and he has been fantastic. I wanted him outside, wanted him refereeing it [training]. I said I want him to be harsh in terms of everything on us.
Something had to give following the concession of 41 England penalties in three February matches#SixNations #ENGvFRA
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 10, 2021
“He picked up a couple with us, kicking off No10 a couple of times and people being in front of the kick. These little reminders are brilliant for us. Having Christophe in and speaking to (referees boss) Tony Spreadbury all the time is helpful at the moment.”
Across their losses to Bristol, Gloucester, London Irish and Leicester, Wasps conceded a total of 64 penalties as well as one red and one yellow card, hence their decision to call on the expertise of Ridley before Friday’s win at Newcastle where they conceded just ten penalties.
Exeter, meanwhile, conceded 46 penalties in their last four Premiership games before this weekend and while they also had a red card for Jack Yeandle at Sale, they don’t have the inclination to mirror Wasps or England by having referees visit them at training.
“It’s not something we have done recently,” explained Baxter, whose team went on to conceded 13 penalties and give up a yellow card in Saturday’s win over Leicester. “We haven’t got a poor disciplinary record so it’s not something that we have had to deal with recently.
“We would have guys in in pre-season as much to start things moving for us to know where everything is if there are any directives. We will often have a good chat through it with Tony or with the other referees. For me, we would do it if we had an issue but when we have not got an issue we don’t worry about it too much.
“I actually have relatively little interaction with the referees if I am honest. We don’t want to be one of those clubs that send loads of clips in to try and influence things pre- or post-game. I’m one of these old-school rugby guys in a lot of ways and the only thing I want from the referee is to turn up on the day and referee as he sees it on the day.
“That is the only thing I expect from referees because that is what real impartiality is, which is what we should all want. So many of these other things that get said and get done, they are kind of saying, ‘Well, if it goes our way we are quite happy with it but if it’s not we have got to try and change things’.
“It is the right thing to do to bring a ref in if you are becoming penalty-ridden in one area so I can understand what Wasps are doing, they are trying to pin down some observation of what they are doing. But some of the other stuff is just a little bit, it’s almost creating a pressure and a scenario around refereeing I don’t think helps anybody if I am honest with you,” continued Baxter.
“The only time I have ever spoken to Tony about something like this is if we went two or three weeks with an unexplained penalty count that just doesn’t look right. So if you suddenly go into a game where that roundabout ten, twelve penalties is happening to both teams you kind of click along and go that is a relative averaging out of where everyone is.
“But if you start trying to isolate every single penalty you’re just kidding yourself because so many things go on in a game of rugby you should never try and isolate every individual penalty, you should just try and deal with the game as a whole.
“I’ll tell you who uses a good phrase, some of the French referees – ‘A game of rugby should have equity in it’. That is what you should feel when you walk off. You might be upset with the odd decision but on the whole, you walk off and go that’s fine. So the only time I’d have an issue is when it’s not felt like that over two or three games.”
RugbyPass Offload EP 21 with Neil Back ?
We are honoured to be joined by former British and Irish Lion and World Cup winner Neil Back!
He joins Christina Mahon, Dylan Hartley & Ryan Wilson this week to review the Six Nations! ?
?? – https://t.co/9j0yPN7kNH pic.twitter.com/5YnukXGVyr
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 17, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments