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'Who butchered that?' - Ian Foster panned over All Blacks blunder
All Blacks head coach Ian Foster was panned by many over a critical personnel blunder, which lead to the best player in the first Test spending most of the second on the sidelines, helplessly watching on as Ireland claimed their first victory over the men in black on NZ soil.
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When All Blacks lost Angus Ta’avao to a 30th-minute red card and with Ofa Tuungafasi already in the sin bin, Foster’s side found themselves defending their line with Irish camped in their 22.
Ireland were awarded a penalty within 10 of the All Blacks’ try line, a situation which would 99 per cent of the time would have seen Ireland kick to touch in order to maul off the lineout.
However, realising the All Blacks who were down to 13-men and would be obliged to commit eight players to a scrum, a quick-thinking Johnny Sexton called for the setpiece from match day referee Jaco Peyper.
The All Blacks then critically called for Ardie Savea to be subbed off to allow Aidan Ross take the field for the scrum. They were then forced to make up the eight with backs – centre Quinn Tupaea and first-five Beauden Barrett both drafted into the back row in a scrum that was uncontested.
It was at this scrum that things got a little confused.
What Peyper appeared to miss was that the All Blacks had forced uncontested scrum through foul play, and should have been obliged to remove another nominated player, a fate that befell Italy in this year’s Guinness Six Nations game, also against Ireland.
The Law reads: “If a front-row player is sent off , and the team cannot continue with contested scrums with players already on the field, then the team nominates another player [Savea] to leave the playing area to enable an available front-row player to come on. The nominated player may act as a replacement.”
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In this case it would have meant New Zealand should have gone down to 12 men. They got away with it, so to speak, and went on to play with 13 and then 14-men when Tuungafasi returned to the field.
Ireland didn’t score off the scrum but it forced New Zealand into removing a player, which crucially ended up being Savea. It was a major blunder, as it ultimately lead to Savea not returning later in the contest.
There was some confusion when Tuungafasi did return from the bin, with Savea looking to return with him, until it was pointed out that they had 15 players on the pitch.
The All Blacks made a second, potentially more crucial mistake though, as they didn’t realise that they could bring Savea back on as a replacement. Under the Law 3.20, Savea would have been able to replace one of his teammates later in the game.
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A small number of people did pick up that the All Blacks should have been down to 12 and not 13-men and that Savea could have returned as a replacement in the back row had Foster called for it.
Foster has since said he was advised that Savea could return by the officials.
Worth noting that under the laws of the game, Ardie Savea can absolutely return to the field at any point in this match as a substitute – so he should have been able to return in place of Dalton Papalii. #NZLvIRE #AllBlacks
— Tom Vinicombe (@TomVinicombe) July 9, 2022
Richard Gordon wrote: “For those confused about what happened in the #NZvIRE game, under law: 1) Savea can return as a replacement. 2) Papalii cannot return. 3) The ABs should have dropped another player and gone to 12 when uncontested scrums.”
For those confused about what happened in the #NZvIRE game, under law:
1) Savea can return as a replacement.
2) Papalii cannot return.
3) The ABs should have dropped another player and gone to 12 when uncontested scrums.— Richard Gordon (@gordo_nz) July 9, 2022
The loss of Savea was certainly picked up on social media, where the call was pilloried – Foster the scapegoat in chief.
Former All Blacks flyhalf Lima Sopoaga wrote: “Damn you really wanna play without Ardie Savea? Who butchered that?”
Damn you really wanna play without ardie savea?
Who butchered that ?????— Lima Sopoaga (@LimaSopoaga) July 9, 2022
Dylan Jack wrote: “Ian Foster butchered the Ardie Savea call. No matter what, Savea should be the last player you bring off.”
Ian Foster butchered the Ardie Savea call. No matter what, Savea should be the last player you bring off.#NZvIRE
— Dylan Jack (@dylmjack) July 9, 2022
South African rugby scribe Mark Keohane posted: “Leaving Sam Cane and sacrificing Ardi Savea summed up everything you need to know about Foster’s thinking.”
Leaving Sam Cane and sacrificing Ardi Savea summed up everything you need to know about Foster's thinking.
— Mark Keohane (@mark_keohane) July 9, 2022
That Ardie Savea call will haunt the ABs.
— Benedict Chanakira (@bchanakira2) July 9, 2022
In the end it didn’t matter the mess up by officials didn’t stop Ireland winning the game, not least as they already had a one man advantage. It does however question how on the ball the coaching ticket were when they decided to take arguably their most influential forward off.
Comments on RugbyPass
Jake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
11 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to commentsMake what step up? Manie has a World Cup winner’s medal around his neck and changed the way the Springboks can play. He doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. The win record of the Boks with him in the team is tremendous. Sacha can be wonderful and I hope he has a very succesful Bok career, but comparing him to Manie in terms of the next Bok flyhalf is very strange. Manie is the incumbent (not the next) and doing pretty incredibly.
1 Go to comments00 😍 U
1 Go to commentsSabbaticals have helped keep NZ’s very best talent in the country on long term deals - this fact has been left out of this article. Much like the articles calling to allow overseas players to be selected, yet can only name one player currently not signed to NZR who would be selected for the ABs. And in the entire history of NZ players leaving to play overseas, literally only 4 or 5 have left in their prime as current ABs. (Piatau, Evans, Hayman, Mo’unga,?) Yes Carter got an injury while playing in France 16 years ago, but he also got a tournament ending injury at the 2011 World Cup while taking mid-week practice kicks at goal. Maybe Jordie gets a season-ending injury while playing in Ireland, maybe he gets one next week against the Brumbies. NZR have many shortcomings, but keeping the very best players in the country and/or available for ABs selection is not one of them. Likewise for workload management - players missing 2 games out of 14 is hardly a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Again let’s use some facts - did it stop the Crusaders winning SR so many times consecutively when during any given week they would be missing 2 of their best players? The whole idea of the sabbatical is to reward your best players who are willing to sign very long term deals with some time to do whatever they want. They are not handed out willy-nilly, and at nowhere near the levels that would somehow devalue Super Rugby. In this particular example JB is locked in with NZR for what will probably (hopefully) be the best years of his career, hard to imagine him not sticking around for a couple more after for a Lions tour and one more world cup. He has the potential to become the most capped AB of all time. A much better outcome than him leaving NZ for a minimum of 3 years at the age of 27, unlikely to ever play for the ABs again, which would be the likely alternative.
3 Go to commentsJake White talks more sense than anything I've read in the last 5 years. Hope someone's listening.
11 Go to commentsThe Springboks tried going down the road of only picking home-based players and it was an unmitigated disaster in 2016 and 2017. Picking overseas-based players has been one of the main reason the Boks have done so well since 2018, not only because of the quality Rassie could call on, but because of the knowledge and experience those players brought into camp from England, France and Japan. With some of the big names playing abroad it also gave younger players in SA the chance to break through at franchise level. Would we have seen the emergence of a Ruan Nortje if RG and Lood were still at the Bulls? Not so sure. I understand why Jake would want to block players leaving since his job depends on good results but it’s an approach that would take Bok rugby back to the bad old days and no South African wants to see that.
11 Go to commentsExeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
39 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
11 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
39 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
86 Go to comments