Part of the allure of the ceaseless puzzle that is rugby union lies in its multiple possibilities. Sometimes the laws feel like a giant Rubik’s Cube which very few ever entirely solve. Erno Rubik is 74 now and prefers walking, sailing and gardening but rugby’s quest for structure and simplicity against significant odds would surely strike a chord.
Increasingly, though, all the lawbook-related twisting and turning is driving the sport mad. Twice in consecutive weekends the outcome at Twickenham has been definitively shaped by calls that rugby’s governors would probably have preferred to see go the other way. What does it do for their efforts to broaden its appeal when something as glorious as Sam Underhill’s “try” against New Zealand is disallowed on a still-disputed, arcane technicality while Owen Farrell’s upright collision with André Esterhuizen is ruled legal?
World Rugby backs decision to disallow England’s late try against All Blacks
Days later it is still possible to hear diametrically opposing views on whether or not Courtney Lawes was offside before he charged down TJ Perenara’s box kick – which turns out to be a red herring anyway. Only last week World Rugby issued a directive stating only clear and obvious potential issues should be referred to the television match official, with the aim of reducing reliance on TMO generally. That went well. The internet, meanwhile, is awash with other more clear-cut offences not spotted by the officials during the second half at Twickenham, from Scott Barrett tugging Danny Care off the ball to assorted other offsides and lineout skulduggery.
Regardless of who wins or loses a particular game, the whole situation is becoming increasingly unsatisfactory. With a World Cup in Japan coming up, not to mention this Saturday’s massive Ireland v New Zealand match in Dublin, players, coaches and punters desperately need to know where they stand.
At the moment there are way too many discrepancies, almost to the point where logic is starting to warp. Everyone hates obvious forward passes but no referee will blow for a blatantly crooked feed at a scrum. Jamie George was called for dummying the throw when the ball was still stationary behind his head, yet more serious match-changing aerial obstructions went unpunished.
Samu Kerevi’s clattering collision with Leigh Halfpenny, who subsequently had to leave the field, during Australia’s defeat by Wales, has also highlighted the grey area that still exists regarding reckless or unintentional contact with an opponent’s head. Supporters are now totally confused, baying for cards on the off-chance.
The pressure on referees, accordingly, is once more intensifying. Maybe Eddie Jones’s futuristic idea of having two referees on the field should be activated immediately. Or maybe not. Before it does anything else, rugby has to decide what it wants to be. It is like driving on the motorway at 77mph. Everyone else is doing it, ref, and the police will generally turn a blind eye. Only when the speeding offence is clear and obvious does a ticket arrive in the post. Does rugby really want a game where everyone drives at 69.99mph or should a degree of latitude be permitted?
Before you answer, imagine this scenario. Deep in the red zone at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, Ireland are a point behind New Zealand. They have been through a few phases and Johnny Sexton is back in the pocket, ready to attempt a drop-goal. The ball comes back and, agonisingly, Sexton sends it the wrong side of the left-hand post. Game over. But, wait, what is this? The referee wants to check whether an All Black centre was fractionally too quick out of the blocks as he sought to charge down Sexton’s kick.
The TMO is rocking and rolling the replay footage, not unlike cricket’s HawkEye, but it is too close to call. The booing around the stadium is unprecedented in its volume. Irish fans are demanding a penalty for fractional offside, conveniently forgetting the home midfield have been standing offside for most of the previous 80 minutes. Wayne Barnes, the referee, eventually rules there is insufficient evidence and blows the final whistle. Sexton remonstrates, a great Test ends in acrimony and negativity fills the Dublin air.
Conor Murray ruled out of Ireland autumn Test against New Zealand
Is this what rugby really wants? There is a possible antidote, mentioned before in these pages. Each side is given one video appeal per game, for use in cases of obvious refereeing howlers. If Ireland have already used theirs up, Sexton and his teammates would simply have to lump it unless Barnes and his team of officials rule the offence was blatantly obvious in real time.
It would cut out a good deal of unnecessary appealing, limit the time spent standing around waiting for TMO decisions, restore the referee’s authority and put the game back on a more even keel. The TMO would only otherwise be consulted for “yes or no” try decisions or acts of serious foul play and the self-defeating instances of matches being decided by margins virtually undetectable to the human eye would hopefully be reduced.
Something has to give, for sure. If not, rugby risks being seen as an unsolvable Rubik’s Cube by many. Time marches on and the contentious end to the drawn third Lions Test in Wellington last year, not to mention Scotland’s 2015 World Cup defeat to Australia at Twickenham, will eventually lose their sting. But what if New Zealand meet England or Ireland in a World Cup final in Yokohama next year and the Webb Ellis Cup comes down to whether Brodie Retallick’s moustache was offside or not?
Rugby is a wonderful spectator sport but, if it wants to stay that way, it needs fewer hairline decisions.
Wales angry that Samu Kerevi has escaped punishment for late tackle
Borderline
Good luck to Gary Graham as he looks to pursue an international career with Scotland just a few months after throwing in his lot with England. He hails from a Scottish family, was born in Scotland and, despite a few ill-advised comments after being selected in an England training squad, will be warmly welcomed into Gregor Townsend’s camp.
The wider question is whether Eddie Jones will have cause to regret the increasing number of players slipping through England’s fingers.
The former Sale back Will Addison is now in Ireland’s set-up and Gloucester’s Jake Polledri will be a key part of Italy’s World Cup plans. England have a bigger stock of players from than anyone else but picking the right ones is the crucial part.
And another thing …
As Ireland seek a famous win over New Zealand on Irish soil for the first time what better moment to re-publish Stand Up And Fight, Alan English’s classic account of Munster’s 1978 win over the All Blacks at Thomond Park. The updated paperback edition to celebrate the game’s 40th anniversary is a reminder of simpler times and the life-long bonds and memories rugby can create. Ireland’s class of 2018 – and rugby lovers in general – will find much to inspire them within its pages.