18 Jul 2010

Springboks call for referee consistency

3:06 pm on 18 July 2010

The South African rugby team is calling for more consistency from referees after losing to New Zealand in their Tri-Nations rematch.

The All Blacks defeated South Africa 31-17 in the second test in Wellington on Saturday night.

Springbok coach Peter de Villiers says his side is still coming to terms with new rule interpretations, and is frustrated the calls didn't go both ways, especially with Richie McCaw getting a couple of warnings.

"The only thing that a coach can ask is consistency, and we've played now six games and had six different types of plays on the ground. To me, it's a bit frustrating at the moment."

The All Blacks are happy with the new rule interpretations.

Springbok captain John Smits says that, after playing the All Blacks for so long, he's not surprised that the home side was favoured by the referee in the tackle-ball area.

The tourists were hampered by an early yellow card while the All Blacks escaped a sin-binning despite being continuously penalised inside their own 22 as the Springboks hammered away at their line.