Rugby World Cup
Referees must over-rule some frantic TMO calls, make own review decisions
John Taylor
September 22, 2015
© Jan Hendrik Kruger/Getty Images

It was a tense, sputtering display from England before they finally found their feet and came away with a bonus-point victory over Fiji last week. That was to be expected with so much at stake but their nerves were nothing compared to those of the match officials.

Referee Jaco Peyper from South Africa was the man chosen to set the tone for the tournament, but he seemed totally overawed and made so many elementary mistakes that his chances of making it through to the final could already be over.

Peyper's compatriot Shaun Veldsman, the Television Match Official (TMO), will definitely be packing his bags at the end of the pool stage.

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Both appeared so anxious about the areas they had been asked to police with zero tolerance that they made a huge meal (a hash with no corned beef) of what should have been bread-and-butter decisions.

Peyper was so scared of getting it wrong that he started by referring almost everything to his TMO, and the result was a first half that lasted for more than 52 minutes; more than 10 minutes were spent on referrals over the whole match.

The lowest point came when Nikola Matawalu, the Fiji scrum-half, raced away for what at first appeared to be a try midway through the first half.

As soon as it was referred and replayed on the big screen, everybody at Twickenham bar two knew he had dropped the ball over the line. Amazingly, Peyper and Veldsman were concentrating so hard on looking for something else -- foul play from what I could hear -- that they totally missed it and, after a lengthy review, the try was given.

A final replay on the big screen (unrequested but innocently shown by the sports presentation director) as Fiji lined-up the conversion caught Peyper's eye and finally he too realised it was no try; hugely embarrassing but at least he had the guts to reverse his decision.

Seconds later, the giant Fijian wing, Nemani Nadolo, out-jumped Anthony Watson to catch a diagonal kick and score, a wonderfully athletic piece of rugby skill, but the applause was killed when it was referred to the TMO.

One quick replay would have confirmed that Nadolo was not in front of the kicker -- the only possible reason for disallowing the try -- but we had to go through endless replays of the actual catch and grounding as well before the score was finally given.

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In this case, no referral should have been necessary. The assistant referees are the offside judges and were perfectly placed but stayed silent.

We want accurate refereeing and the correct decisions, but this is slowing the game down beyond acceptable limits.

It is interesting to see that Owen Farrell has even suggested that the delays provide such an extended recovery time that they are undermining the fitness advantage he feels England have over other teams.

A week before the start of the tournament I chaired a Question and Answer session with Wayne Barnes (who, incidentally, started his tournament with a far more confident performance in the New Zealand v Argentina match on Sunday) and he confirmed that the referees are also in competition, looking to be selected to officiate in a quarterfinal and ultimately the final itself.

Barnes also confirmed he is first and foremost an England fan and will be cheering them all the way to the final even if it means he cannot achieve a lifetime ambition.

He also flagged up the areas where referees have been told to be strict. World Rugby has suggested we can expect law changes to try to reduce concussion, and Barnes acknowledged that referees have already been told to be tougher on high tackles.

Now, and it has been very apparent in the matches so far, any suggestion that a tackler may have collared his man -- literally -- grabbing him around the neck even if the contact started legally, below the shoulder, sets the alarm bells clanging.

Only a fool will fail to see the sense of such an initiative, but an incident in the Wales vs. Uruguay game left me dreading what lies ahead if this is the way it is going to being implemented.

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Suddenly, I heard the TMO screaming, "Check, check -- dangerous play -- clean-out with no arms, Uruguay 6". The referee, Romain Poite, immediately stopped play even though there was a move in full flow and drew a television screen in the air.

He gave a penalty after several replays but it was touch and go, one of those difficult engagements when the player went to bind but there was nothing to bind on to. Significantly, there was no yellow card. Insidiously, the TMO had taken over the refereeing of the game.

A step too far? I certainly believe so and so does everybody else right up to John Jeffrey, the man in charge of referees for World Rugby since 2010, but can we believe what he says when the problem is growing more serious by the game.

Under the guise of seeking accuracy and player safety, we seem to be heading for a game refereed by a faceless fellow hidden away in a studio in the television compound behind the North Stand, unless the real referees reassert themselves.

Fortunately, the two most experienced officials at this World Cup, Nigel Owens and Barnes, are determined to remain in control. Instead of asking the TMO for opinion they make their own decisions and that is vital.

Unless it is England vs. Wales (yes, I'm still prepared to dream) it will be a travesty if one of those two referees does not get the final as they are that much better than the rest.

The other officials need to follow their lead. That starts by over-ruling some of the TMOs' frantic calls -- Poite was in perfect position to see the 'illegal' clean-out and saw nothing untoward; and if there is a review they must then make their own decision.

This has to stop before we are faced with TMC - Too Many Cooks.

© John Taylor

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