Big match refs will adhere to current law trials

Referees officiating in the Heineken and Amlin Challenge Cup competitions will adhere to the law trials in operation in the Aviva Premiership, the Top 14 and the RaboDirect PRO12 competitions.

The law trials include the new scrum engagement sequence of ‘Crouch-Touch-Set’, the five-seconds required to play a ball at a ruck following the referee’s call of ‘Use it’, and the allocation of 90 seconds for a conversion after a try has been awarded. Television Match Officials (TMOs) appointed to Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup fixtures will operate under the existing IRB TMO protocol and not the protocol being trialled in the Aviva Premiership and in the Currie Cup in South Africa.

Referees have been asked to be particularly vigilant at the tackle area, to monitor offside and sealing off at breakdowns and kicks, to ensure a contest at the start of a maul and to manage the scrum engagement sequence. These key points and others were emphasised by ERC Match Official Performance Manager, Donal Courtney, during a comprehensive series of workshops with coaching staff from all 44 clubs who are participating in this season’s ERC tournaments .

Meanwhile, Munster fans will be relieved to note the province’s least favourite referee, Romain Poite, will not be involved in either of the two opening Heineken Cup fixtures.

Munster’s away match to Racing Metro will be handled by England’s Greg Garner, while Wayne Barnes takes charge of round two against Edinburgh at Thomond Park.

Champions Leinster will, however, have a French referee or their opener against Exeter Chiefs at the RDS on October 13. The game will be handled by Pascal Gauzere, while Garner will officiate at their second match — away to Llanelli Scarlets. Ulster’s first game against Castres Olympique will be handled by England’s Andrew Small and their second against Glasgow by Frenchman Mathieu Raynal. Welshman Leighton Hodges takes the opening Connacht game away to Zebre and Frenchman Jerome Garces is in charge of the second, the home game to Harlequins.

Irish referees feature heavily, with John Lacey (Edinburgh v Saracens), Peter Fitzgibbon (Clermont v Scarlets) and George Clancy (Harlequins v Biarritz) featuring on opening day. Alain Rolland (Castres v Northampton), Dudley Phillips (Biarritz v Zebre), George Clancy (Cardiff Blues v Toulon) and Lacey (Exeter v Clermont) are in action for round two.

Phillips gets another European experience when he refs the Bordeaux-Begles v London Irish game in the Amlin Challenge Cup round one while Leo Colgan (Cavaliera Prato v London Welsh) and David Wilkinson (Rugby Mogliano v London Wasps) get games in round two to give Ireland the biggest refereeing representation over the two competitions.