Referee inaction leaves rugby at a crossroads
If one parks the Canadian game, given that an entirely different side took the field against the Canucks that day, it is difficult to recall a time when Ireland put two better, back-to- back, performances together than what we witnessed in those captivating contests against New Zealand this month.
An aggregate score of 50-49, with New Zealand coming out on top, seems just about right, especially when they out-scored Ireland by seven tries to five. Even more telling was the fact that they succeeded in keeping Ireland try-less at home, in front of a magnificently partisan crowd who did everything on the day to inspire another historic victory.
Despite the quality of performance delivered by the men that replaced them, losing key players of the quality of Johnny Sexton, Robbie Henshaw and CJ Stander so early in the game had a big influence on the eventual outcome. Only twice since Stander has become Irish eligible has the thunderously explosive back row combination of himself, Jamie Heaslip, and Sean O’Brien had the opportunity to start a test game together.
On Saturday they only lasted 22 minutes as a unit, two more more than their first outing together against France last February when O’Brien ripped his hamstring to shreds. They looked sensational in that opening quarter and to think that we also have Peter O’Mahony now back firing on all cylinders, along with Josh van der Flier, who was superb when introduced.
Apart from the result, the big disappointment surrounding Saturday’s outing was the quality of the officiating and I take no pleasure in turning the spotlight in that direction. The bottom line however is that the likes of South African referee Jaco Peyper are full- time, paid officials, and as such must be called to account just like the player who so often finds himself on the sideline after a substandard performance.
All Blacks centre Malakai Fekitoa was last night for his high tackle on Simon Zebo that only drew a yellow card in Saturday’s feisty clash.
Flanker Sam Cane also faced a disciplinary hearing last night, for the tackle that left Robbie Henshaw unconscious but he was cleared.
For me, under the edict issued by World Rugby only two weeks ago, the consequences of the high tackle on Zebo by Fekitoa could not have been more clear cut. It was a red card offence.
World Rugby issued a directive to match officials to crackdown on dangerous play above the shoulder. The governing body said it had instructed referees to be “strict when it comes to tackles, charges, strikes or kicks that make contact above the shoulder line” and to favour strong sanctions, including red cards for severe acts of foul play.
The circumstances surrounding the contact made by Cane on Henshaw is less clear cut even if the outcome was far more destructive. I have argued before that the outcome shouldn’t influence the decision as in the case when Pat Lambie was stretchered off after being hit by Stander in Cape Town last June.
The last thing we need in rugby is players simulating injury in order to get another man sent off.
That clearly wasn’t the case with Lambie, Henshaw or, for that matter, Zebo when he was on the end of that high swinging arm from Fekitoa. Despite being stunned, Zebo immediately gets back to his knee while receiving treatment.
Had he stayed down, and lain motionless on the ground, would the colour of the card issued to Fekotoa have been different? If so then rugby is heading into dangerous territory which thankfully, apart from a few isolated incidents, we have managed to avoid. The responsibility to deal with foul play must remain in the hands of the referee and his team of officials on the day.
I do have sympathy for officials in that sometimes, in the heat of battle, these things are difficult to call. That said, by stopping play, reviewing the footage, having a second opinion with the TMO on board, it should make that process far more straightforward. Unfortunately, despite the aid of technology, that isn’t always the case.
The problem with the tackle in the modern game is that players are coached and encouraged to make a statement with the ferocity of the hit. Defence coaches crave offensive tackles, ones that propel the ball carrier backwards and facilitate you in getting over the gain line.
The days when merely felling an opponent by tackling him around the ankles to stop him in his tracks are gone. You must stop his momentum. That has encouraged bigger collisions. Given that, with full-time training, players are bigger, stronger, and faster, the consequences of these collisions are there for all to see. Whatever about Cane wrapping his hands in the tackle, the fact that he comes flying in, like an Exocet missile, was bound to have dangerous consequences.
It is challenging to get it right without diluting the physical element of the game. At the other end of the scale, Billy Holland was penalised against Canada for what another South African referee, Marius van der Westhuizen, interpreted at the time as a neck roll. It was nothing of the sort.
Holland was conscious of where his hand had ended up in the tackle and made no effort to wrap it around the neck of the Canadian player. Yet he received the exact same sanction as Cane’s tackle on Henshaw. Getting that balance right is proving taxing.
Perhaps what sets New Zealand apart is that, as a team, they can play to the extremes. Gifted with the ball in hand, they have perfected the art of avoiding contact when in possession, putting players into space with the quality and range of their passing skills. Witness that game- clinching try from Fekitoa with two audacious passes from Beauden Barrett and TJ Perenara.
On the flip side, as Ireland discovered on Saturday, they can transition into a team of ruthless assassins in the tackle when you have the ball. Then again, New Zealand sides have never stood on ceremony.
Rugby at all levels in New Zealand is ruthless. What separates them from the rest is their ability to mix some sublime individual skills with bone-crunching physicality, often in the same phase of play.
France used to be able to do that but sadly have gone down the direct physical route in recent times, as Ireland also discovered in Paris last February, while South Africa have only ever known one way. Teams have learned to cope with traditional Springbok physicality and they have found nowhere to go. South African rugby is in a shambolic state and it will be interesting to see if that shock defeat to Italy will be a catalyst for change or cause even more leading players to ply their trade abroad.
Michael Cheika’s Wallabies pose a different but equally imposing challenge next Saturday but with a number of changes on the cards for a variety of reasons, Ireland need to cap this Guinness Series off with another memorable win.
To defeat South Africa, New Zealand and Australia in the space of five months would represent a monumental achievement for rugby in this country. Australia however are chasing landmarks of their own and, as always, will make life difficult for us.
