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Tokyo — World Rugby issued a rare criticism of refereeing standards at the World Cup yesterday after a number of controversies in the tournament’s opening days.
The governing body said there had been “initial challenges” with technology and communications between match officials at the tournament in Japan.
Several incidents have been missed by officials — and shared widely on social media —since the tournament kicked off on Friday.
“Following the usual review of matches, the match officials team recognise that performances over the opening weekend of Rugby World Cup 2019 were not consistently of the standards set by World Rugby and themselves,” a statement said.
“But World Rugby is confident of the highest standards of officiating moving forward.”
Reece Hodge’s apparent high shot on Fiji’s Peceli Yato went unpunished at the time, but the Australia wing was later cited and will face a disciplinary hearing today.
Footage of All Blacks captain Kieran Read’s head-high, off-the-ball tackle on South Africa’s Pieter-Steph du Toit, unnoticed by officials, has also drawn much comment online.
And Louis Picamoles appeared clearly offside when he made a crucial interception in France’s narrow 23-21 win over Argentina, whose coach later slammed the officiating.
Just an hour after the World Rugby statement, refereeing was again under the spotlight as Samoa and Russia played out a bruising encounter in Kumagaya that saw three yellow cards.
For the first two yellows, both for high tackles, French referee Romain Poite very deliberately followed World Rugby’s new protocol for policing high tackles with the help of his Television Match Official (TMO).
In both instances, Poite decided there was a “mitigating” reason against giving a red card, as the player being tackled — fullback Vasily Artemyev on both occasions — had stooped as the hit was coming in. This saved Samoa’s Motu Matu’u and Rey Lee-Lo from a straight red.
The third case, an arm around the neck from Russian prop Kirill Gotovtsev, was more clear-cut and Poite reached straight for the yellow card.
“Elite match officials are required to make decisions in complex, high-pressure situations and there have been initial challenges with the use of technology and team communication, which have impacted decision-making,” World Rugby said.
“These are already being addressed by the team of 23 match officials to enhance consistency. Given this proactive approach, a strong team ethic and a superb support structure, World Rugby has every confidence in the team.”
Meanwhile, The All Blacks selectors have settled on their much-debated top midfield combination, but they’re keeping their preference under wraps.
After Ryan Crotty and Anton Lienert-Brown started in their blockbuster opener against South Africa, the veteran Sonny Bill Williams and rising talent Jack Goodhue can expect plenty of game time against Canada, Namibia and Italy before the quarter-finals.
Assistant coach Ian Foster believes it’s good practice to mix up the midfield foursome so there is familiarity for all possible combinations.
“Do we know what our leading midfield is? Probably. We’ve got a good idea. I’m not going to tell you but I’m really happy with the combinations we’re developing,” Foster said.
“History’s told us it’s a physical area. We’ve often had to make changes in that area in the last two years. We haven’t had a lot of consistency of two guys doing the role for a whole lot of Tests in a row. Some people see that as a negative, we see that as a positive.”
Settling on the centres is the last piece in the puzzle for the All Blacks’ A-list backline, with the coaches seemingly happy with Aaron Smith and Richie Mo’unga as halves with Beauden Barrett as a roving fullback and the energetic George Bridge and Sevu Reece on the wings.
The defending champions, who headed to the hot-springs resort city of Beppu in southern Japan on Tuesday, have a 10-day break before their next match against Canada.
But Foster said there will be no slacking off.
“The reality is we’ve got three more opportunities to hone our game and to get it to the point we need it to be at,” he said.
“The only way we’re going to progress any further is if we keep trying to meet our own expectations on a daily basis.” — AFP.
Online Reporter