19 Mar 2018

Rugby refs: Shocking appointments and mystifying calls

6:48 pm on 19 March 2018

Rugby officiating has come under some severe scrutiny this week and the issues it has raised go a fair bit deeper this time, writes Jamie Wall.

Conraad Van Vuuren of the Bulls was yellow carded for this tackle on Chiefs player Damian McKenzie

Conraad Van Vuuren of the Bulls was yellow carded for this tackle on Chiefs player Damian McKenzie, but should it have been a red? Photo: AFP or licensors

It's been a bad week for rugby refs.

When I arrived at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday night for the Highlanders' win over the Crusaders, I saw a familiar face. It was Colin Hawke, retired referee of more than 200 first class games and now coach of the contracted officials employed by NZ Rugby.

He is a friendly guy and it was handy having a knowledgeable official there to query about some of the grey area calls. We chatted about his role and what exactly being a 'referee coach' entailed and both enjoyed a tough encounter between the two sides.

The media at Forsyth Barr simply get a row of desks out with the paying public, unlike the high windowed rooms at Eden Park and Westpac Stadium - which is the trade off for having a stadium with a roof, I guess. So we were exposed to the noise and atmosphere that the game generated, and it was full-on. Of course, it didn't take long for a few well-lubricated punters to spot Hawke and make some reasonably loud remarks about his track history officiating Otago matches in the 1990s.

He made two huge calls in the biggest provincial games of 1994 and 1995. They both meant that Otago were beaten in a Ranfurly Shield challenge and NPC final in case you've forgotten, but the blue and gold faithful attending the Highlanders game certainly hadn't. Keith Quinn's commentary around the penalty try awarded for Auckland in 1995 was remarkably prescient: "Now they'll argue for YEARS about that one".

This was, of course, during a week when rugby officiating has come under some severe scrutiny. Not just the usual dodgy calls, either, the issues that have been raised go a fair bit deeper this time.

In the prelude to what ultimately ended up being Ireland's Grand Slam win over England, it was reported that one of the assistant referees named for the match had been helping out the English squad train. Just exactly what Marius van der Westhuizen was thinking agreeing to such an arrangement is anyone's guess.

Closer to home, on Friday night the Chiefs overcame the Bulls in Hamilton. But while the game was an exciting affair and featured a couple of breathtaking tries, the main talking point was the issuing of a yellow card by Shuhei Kubo to Conraad van Vuuren.

The Bulls prop had done his best attempt to decapitate Damian McKenzie with a shoulder charge in the second half, an act that everyone thought meant a straight red.

How the referee and TMO came to the conclusion of a yellow is mystifying to say the least. It was especially galling for the Chiefs, who had seen an (accidental) head contact of their own turn into a crucial penalty try a few weeks ago.

Then this morning came probably the most shocking case of a refereeing appointment since the days of hometown South African whistleblowers when the All Blacks toured. Spain, who have had a dream run in World Cup qualifying, needed to beat Belgium to seal a spot for next year's tournament ahead of Romania. Their 18-10 loss to the Belgians was an upset. But when you take into account that referee Vlad Iordăchescu was Romanian, World Rugby now have some serious explaining to do.

Add in a magnificently imbalanced 24 to 4 penalty count to the Belgians (which is ridiculously high in any event), and it all starts to look like something out of the FIFA playbook. Especially when the Spaniards angrily rushed Iordăchescu at the end of the game, giving the whole thing a touch of football farce.

In the wash up, van der Westhuizen was stood down and his involvement with the English probably would've had little bearing on the result even if he had been allowed to carry the flag for the game anyway. Van Vuuren has been suspended for three weeks, his team lost anyway, and McKenzie didn't actually get hurt.

If nothing else, the Spanish/Romanian situation has highlighted a need for more investment in Tier 2 officiating. So, as they say, not the end of the world.

Not that anyone will forget about any of those issues though, or fail to remind anyone involved of perceived unfairness. Which they gave my experience meeting Colin Hawke a little more context. He's still copping it in Dunedin for two decisions he got made more than 20 years ago.

And he got those right.

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