Why are we so quick to blame the referees?

It seems that barely a weekend goes by without one player committing a fundamental error of skill or judgement in a game, which negatively influences the way the game of rugby is played and decided.

 

 

 

For the better ways to deal with players, and in turn demonstrating why he is the world’s best referee.

 

 

 

 

But how to fix it?

 

 

Well, it’s simple for the professionals.

 

 

We scout the country for players who appear to have the capability for higher honours, we train them with the highest quality coaching staff available, put them into specially tailored programs and pathways and eventually let them audition for a coveted Super Rugby contract when the time is right.

 

 

Oh, wait…we already do that. We are improving the operation system with a long overdue ‘third tier’ later in 2014.

 

 

Astoundingly, these mistakes still occur, even though we have the best possible players, with the best possible training, with the best available resources.

 

 

Maybe it is time that we used modern technology, for example, in the clothing so players get more aerodynamic when running, or placing gripping fibres into the ‘cloth’, or with better rugby balls that can be kicked further and caught easier…

 

 

Wait…we do that too!

 

 

Well, we have given these players opportunity, financial incentive, motivation and workplace-based training.

 

 

Yet the closest thing to I have seen to no dropped ball in a Test was in last year’s Wales v Australia Test match with almost 45 minutes elapsing until the first scrum, and that was due to the excellent advantage played by the referee, Wayne Barnes.

 

 

Maybe it’s time to look more in depth at a team’s performance, make the players truly accountable (instead of the referee or the coaching staff) as at the end of the day, it’s the players who have taken the field to do the job they are paid for.

 

 

Perhaps it is time to stop blaming the referee for ‘losing the game’ when he makes one bad call.

 

 

I’m not denying that the referee is human and will make mistakes, but as a referee myself, I’d be abso-bloody-lutely cheering if I only made one error in an 80 minute match!

 

 

There is a human element that is still, thankfully, in sport. As said in cricket circles, your luck will always balance out in the end.

 

 

Unfortunately, for rugby union in particular, a lot of the refereeing (and coaching etc) happens on a voluntary basis.

 

 

Some codes have found ways to pay referees, or at east subsidise some of the costs to entice referees to their sports.

 

 

This I completely agree with and it cannot come fast enough.

 

 

I was a rugby referee in the ACT. In the 2013 season, I was involved in over 40 games as a referee, assistant referee and Super Rugby match official.

 

 

For this, I was paid $0 (some travel costs were reimbursed for games outside of the ACT, and I’ll admit that the experience of working at the Super Rugby games was well and truly worth it).

 

But that still leaves over 30 games that I have done out of the love of the game.

 

Even the best referees have off days, or make one or two errors, but I believe that it is part and parcel of the nature of rugby.

 

Much like life in general, you take the good with the bad.

Some sound advice for one poster in particular (aka "It's the refs fault).

 

 

 The problem is not with the refs. It is more a matter of the spectators/supporters not knowing the laws  of the game. The fact that most of the commentators are equally in the dark does not help a lot either. Two of the biggest culprits form an SA point of view are Bob Skinstad and Joel Stransky. The NZ commentators are not much better, bar maybe Justin Marshall.

Most of arm chair critics will crap themselves if they were ever given a whistle to ref a game.

Spot on CeraDunce.
The problem is exacerbated when hopelessly biased commentators like Bob Skinstad are given a public voice and are allowed to express their ignorance to the impressionable ref-bashing half-wits sitting at home in their armchairs. 
I cringe when I hear Bob bitching about every single decision that goes against the team he supports while he keeps tjoepstil when patently incorrect decisions go his way.
By putting a one-eyed fool like Skinstad behind a microphone, you're also giving the excuse-making snivellers (like Baboon-ou) a measure of credibility which is completely unwarranted and contributes to the international perception that South African rugby fans are a bunch of crybaby conspiracy theorists.

I was watching a game at some stage and the referee penalised a no 8, during a scrum, for  "slingshotting". Immediately Skinstad was on his high horse because ".....there is no such law" and that the ref (Joubert, IIRC) was making laws on the fly. The penalty was for the no 8 not binding and then hitting in, like a slingshot, on the "engage" command from the ref. It is covered under this law:

20.3 Binding in the scrum
(f)Binding by all other players. A ll players in a scrum, other than front-row players, must bind on a lock’s body with at least one arm prior to the scrum engagement. The locks must bind with the props in front of them. No other player other than a prop may hold an opponent.
Sanction: Penalty kick

 Aussie commentators are far worse when it comes to ignorance of well,rugby in general let alone the laws .When I played we gave a bit of a cheer for the ref as well as the opposition  looks like that attitude has'nt been carried on with eh? Most refs do a good job or are at worst prone to the odd mistake ,heck I have even forgiven that Wayne Barnes geezer and what he did to the ABS meant more than the average test ,but even he has improved and I dont have a problem with him .Ref bashing doesnt help anyones cause especially when they are physically and other wise attacked  [ bok fans take note ! ] who would want the job ? And it starts with junior refs being abused which is utterly disgraceful and a poor example for young players .

 Aussie commentators are far worse when it comes to ignorance of well,rugby in general let alone the laws .When I played we gave a bit of a cheer for the ref as well as the opposition  looks like that attitude has'nt been carried on with eh? Most refs do a good job or are at worst prone to the odd mistake ,heck I have even forgiven that Wayne Barnes geezer and what he did to the ABS meant more than the average test ,but even he has improved and I dont have a problem with him .Ref bashing doesnt help anyones cause especially when they are physically and other wise attacked  [ bok fans take note ! ] who would want the job ? And it starts with junior refs being abused which is utterly disgraceful and a poor example for young players .

 I was involved in a rugby club before I left SA. We were playing our big rivals in a neighbouring town and by halftime  we were something like 35-3 up. Shortly after halftime their the chairman of the provincial referee's association was next to the field and the chairman of our opponents was shouting at him: "Hey E** where do you get these useless fucking crap refs from and why don't you train them properly.". He replied: "Listen J***n, at 35-3 at halftime, you are not even in the fucking game. There is no way that you can blame the ref for that."
Strange thing is that it is funny how it is always the loosing team that gets shafted by the ref. 
Bryce Lawrence had a hand in our loss in the RWC QFs but he did not loose us the game. We had it won, despite Lawrence crap reffing, and we lost it ourselves.
Romain Poite made a big balls-up in Dunedin, but Bismarck's second yellow card and the subsequent red was his own fucking stupidity. He knew he was on a yellow and he knew what would happen if he got another one. He had to be extra careful.

 Yep if M Steyn had done the one thing hes noted for the Aussies were toast ,and if France had of kicked their chances same same ,even Wales still held their fate in their own hands [ or feet as it were ] Frankly I am done with whining at refs ,it makes no difference to the outcome and causes unnecessary angst to all concerned ,cest la vie ....

It's not so much that they make mistakes, it's that they favour certain teams over others. The IRB is corrupt.

 If the motion of the passers hands were behind him in the direction of his goal posts its a legal pass ,if the receiver was behind the passer its legal .Only the very stupid who dont understand the most basic laws of physics and momentum get confused by this and the only way to make it understandable for the poor dears is to force players to stop for every pass .And anyone who thinks that some teams get favoured by refs is just sad and prone to indulge in conspiracy theories to explain their teams piss poor performance ,in advance .If your teams good enough they will win if not then tough .

 Ow ! need a new telly yet Cloudy ? hahahaha we've all been there ! 

 You tell them Owen hahahahahahahaha

most blame the ref simply cos they dont want to accept the fact that their teams are inferior, like the No2 Boks compared to the No1 All Blacks.

refs arent completely free of blame though, but i can only recollect about 6 games ever where the ref was the No1 reason for the outcome.