An article by Mark Reason (British) that appeared in the UK based paper the Telegragh gives further insight:
Mr Bryce Lawrence, the son of an official, is rated rather highly by those in charge of the whistle blowers (Dear Old Paddy!!! And BL dad!!!). But a lot of players and fans have absolutely no idea why. He made a complete hash of today's game between Australia and South Africa and the Springboks will be furious. (Well has there ever been a worst display of biased refereeing?)
They identified the breakdown as a crucial area of the match beforehand,
but they did expect there to be some sort of reffing.
The South Africans thought that the tackler would have to release the ball carrier. They thought that the offside line would be respected. They thought that men would have to stay on the feet. Instead it was a complete shambles.
The trouble is that Lawrence has form at this sort of thing.
He was given the final of Super Rugby for apparently being the best ref in the tournament. (Hahahhahahahahahaha)
Some of us thought that the South African refs were in an altogether different class.
They would also have had the advantage of being neutral as the final was between an Aussie and a Kiwi side. But no, Mr Lawrence got the nod. ………
But unless the IRB's refs get a grip we are going to have some really dull semi-finals.
Hopefully the guys who can really get a grip at the breakdown – the South Africans and the Northern Hemisphere refs – will be put in charge of the final four matches.
If we let a Kiwi near the games, then it will be more mayhem.
South Africa will feel cheated. And they have every right to complain. (Only some nz oaks and one or two lunatics like windpomp would think otherwise)
Mark Reason also wrote this severe indictment:
If New Zealand go out of a consecutive World Cup because of another dodgy refereeing decision, they will have no one to blame but themselves.
The All Blacks no longer even bother to bend the laws. They set out to deliberately cheat.
For only one piffling syllable, CHEAT is an awfully big word. "Who are you calling a cheat?" demands the card-playing gunslinger, just before the mandatory murder and the five aces sliding from the sleeve.
The All Blacks cheat in spades. Half of their tries in the Tri- Nations have been set up by blatant cheating.
Go back to the first South Africa game just before Wyatt Crockett scored in the corner. It is hard to believe that Richie McCaw could be four yards offside and get away with it, but there he is holding back the South African lock. (Oaks it’s why the world calls him mccheat but to an nz oak he is a demi god – they have a different culture it seems!!!! – No wonder the guys like taking shots at wee mcaaaaw)
In the first game against Australia they are at it again.
Piri Weepu set up the first try by going through a hole created by Ali Williams holding Quade Cooper to the ground.
In the buildup to the second try Ma'a Nonu sets a screen (much as they might do in basketball) for Kieran Read.
Every week
Paddy O'Brien ( he whose reign coincided for much of this unbeaten run), the International Rugby Board head of referees, sends out a directive to the coaches about issues that have arisen from the weekend games. At this point
O'Brien warned coaches about all the holding back and obstruction that was going on. He might as well have told the All Blacks to stop doing the haka for all the notice they took.
New Zealand were at it again on Saturday. There were just three incidents in the leadup to their first try, but the second try was exceptional.
As Nonu was running through another black hole, a prone David Pocock was waving his arms in frustration. McCaw and Keven Mealamu had held him pinned to the ground for 14 seconds.
Even by the very high standards of the All Blacks, 14 seconds must have constituted a personal best (Bwahahhahahahaha). Does McCaw have an invisibility cloak that only television cameras can penetrate? Even Robbie Deans called him "a bloody menace" and that's when he was coach of the Crusaders.
Perhaps the funniest moment in Saturday's game was when the commentator opined that Brad Thorn had been "unfortunate" to bump into Williams. The ref was gullible enough to award an accidental offside
And so the sad litany goes on and on and on. The reputation of the abs lies in tatters and only a comprehensive clean out can change things. Judging by the reaction of the nz fans here, this is unlikely. The new appointment of BL serves only to suggest we can expect more of the same unless the IRB takes them in hand and herein lies some hope and both BL and Paddy were shown the door.
