ForceFan
Peter Fenwicke (45)
The title of the thread is more than just getting your attention.
It's about real concerns about the inconsistency of dealing with tackles and cleanouts that are achieved by forcibly grabbing and/or wrenching players around the neck and/or head.
It's also a bit of a rant about what I consider was the totally inconsistent refereeing in last weekend's game between the Brumbies and Force in Perth.
The game resulted in a Brumbies 32:14 Force win.
AND a Penalty count of Brumbies 17:10 Force.
To recap on the Brumbies v Waratahs Round 1:
Brumbies 32:15 Waratahs
Penalty count: Brumbies 10:18 Waratahs.
This is a slightly toned down version of a number of posts on the twf fan blog.
"The Brumbies and The Cloak of Invisibility"
Preamble
An incomprehensible, incompetent and inconsistent effort of rugby refereeing by Andrew Lees and total lack of impact by his three assistants – Damien Mitchelmore, Michael Hogan and Ian Smith.
I marvel at just how Force’s captain Matt Hodgson held things together – especially during the opening 20 minutes.
Lees’ efforts seemed to totally ignore all of the areas which had been stated would be a focus this year.
To name just a few (more will follow as I collect the remaining stats in a 2nd watching):
00:40 – Moore lays on a blatent no arms, shoulder charge clean-out .
01:00 – Clear forward pass by Brumbies right in front of AR.
17:46 – Head tackle on Pocock
17:56 – Moore head tackle on Coleman
19:11 – Round-house arm swing by Arnold which luckily missed DH-P.
30:25 – V clear knock-on by Moore not called
31:34 – Head tackle on Ainsley32:21 – Very late tackle on Lance by Sio
44:13 – Tessman around head tackle on Pocock
71:06 – Fardy high tackle on Hodgson
A actually thought that after the first 2 rounds there was a genuine effort to stamp out shoulder charges and the head-high stuff that has the potential to cause serious injury.
If that was the case then nobody had informed Andrew Lees that that was the intent.
The Opening 10 Minutes
In just the first 66 seconds of the game, during which time Rod Kafer commented is the time when Lees was evidently stamping his mark on the game (mostly in giving the Force Panalties there were 5 flagrant non-rulings which were in clear view of Lees or the AR on the Eastern Side of NIB.
00:15 - Moore's crude shoulder charge and looping arm hit on Heath Tessman. (This type of act has been a YC in all games in the 2 Rounds). He has since been cleared.
00:54 - Fardy enters the ruck from the side right in front of Lees who has no problems with this.
1:00 - To'omua to Tomane long drifting forward pass which enable the Brumbies to eventually pressure the try line only to be kept out by great D by the Force.
1:00 - Alexander cleans out McCalman with a grab around his neck.
1:02 - Moore then lashes out with a backhand, which connects, to Cowan who had attempted a cleanout. In clear view of the AR.
Then within the next 5 minutes:
Approx 4 mins (no clock on screen) - Butler does a neck roll cleanout on Rasolea. (in clear view of the AR)
Approx 6 mins (no clock on screen) - Arnold does a neck roll on McCalman (results in Penalty on McCalman for no clean break after tackle).
It was clear that Moore and Fardy had been assigned "hit man" status early in the game AND during the time when most "good" refs do try and stamp their mark on the game, Lees just ignored/missed the above.
I reckon the practice of giving warning is just bollocks.
Super Rugby is played by professionals who all should know the rules. The serial transgressors play on the fact that they're going to get warnings while disrupting continuity of the game.
Give the warning in the shed pre-game and YC from the onset will stop this practice.
Moore should have been YC'd if not for the shoulder charge on Tessman at least for the very much intended backhand on Pek Cowan.
Lees should have stamped out the grabbing players around the neck during cleanouts.
If by nothing else by talking to both Captains after the first incident.
Weak refereeing which unfortunately seemed to be to the detriment of the Force and impetus that they were creating. Each time that the Force created any real momentum Lees stepped in.
All this is only from the 1st 10 minutes of watching the game for the 2nd time. In this 10 minutes Andrew Lees and the 2 x ARs + TMO were simply terrible - and they were only just warming up!
10 to 20 minutes. - more things that only a blind man couldn't see.
This is the 10 minutes when Lees is lecturing to Hodgson due to transgressions, and Cowan gets YC'd, yet the Brumbies apparently can do what they want without even a warning.
11:00 - Butler, Pocock and Kuridrani all grab McCalman by the neck at the breakdown.
11:40 - Could argue a good case that Fardy took the short lineout throw from Moore inside the 5 m.
(If the ball is taken in the air over the touch line then can throw the ball back into play provided that land back in field not in touch). Fardy only secured ther ball as he landed inside the 5m line and immediately passed the ball to Moore. Hard to say that the AR wasn't in a position to see this one.
13:25 - Moore grabs hold of Hodgson's shirt at breakdown to slow him down and prevent him moving to next contact. Lees probably unsighted and ball already moving. AR? Warning re foul play?
18:00 RHP has done a good cleanout and immediately Moore grabs hold of Coleman and pulls him on to of DHP. Still holding onto Coleman when once again immediately Lees penalises the Force for not rolling away. The only time Moore lets go of Coleman is after the whistle has blown.
19:11 - DHP has just failed to take a high ball and is falling to ground when Arnold misses him with a hay-maker. DHP lucky that this one didn't connect as was swung with serious intent. This one would have been in clear view of AR. Surely at least worthy of a warning??
By this time, Hodgson, and McCalman are showing some signs of frustration.
I suggest, NOT because of playing all that badly with a 0:10 scoreline but the fact that the Brumbies can apparently do no wrong or at least be held to account for their actions.
By this stage the penalty count was WF 7: 2 Brums.
BUT there had been plenty of opportunities for this to be much closer.
It appeared that the Brumbies had borrowed Richie McCaw's patented "Cloak of Invisibility" and using it to good effect.
Force v Brumbies - 20 to 30 Minutes - The Tide Turns
By 22:00 the score board had moved onto F 0:17 B with a well-worked try resulting from a great Fardy run and offload to To'omua.
However, at 20:51 Toua is well tackled by Morahan and brought to ground. Toua stands straight up without releasing the ball. Clear view of Lees and AR – both only a few m away!!
The painful rugby continued and at 24:00 Lees on cue calls a KO advantage to the Force "over" even before they get a chance to get over the gain line.
"Can we go back to the scrum please Sir?"
By this stage the Brumbies had had 85% possession.
26:00 - Fardy is penalised (P#1) for not supporting his weight. He is gobsmacked. The cloak has stopped working.
26:22 - Tessman has a little hold of Moore's shirt at a ruck. Moore in disbelief that he's been touched by an upstart.
26:49 - Penalty (P#2) goes against the Brumbies and eventually Cubelli gets YC'd for kicking the ball away. This results from Hodgson finally tired of the BS and tries to bring the kick to Lees' attention. Moore continues as his belligerent self and pushes Hodgson away with disdain. Hodgson doesn't want to lose the opportunity. Moore too is gobsmacked and just a bit rattled.
29:16 Scrum penalty (P#3) against the Brumbies!!!!???? Hodgson doesn't take the easy points.
29:30 Another penalty (P#4) against the Brumbies - Fardy for being off his feet (AGAIN) - 2nd in 5.5 minutes close to try line. AGAIN Hodgson is prevented getting access to the ball (for a quick start) as Moore picks it up and slowly walks across and places it at Lees' feet. Mouthing something like: "I don't know what HIS problem is!" The Sea of Blue were only too happy to explain it to both Moore and Lees. Hodgson takes the crap from Moore and Lees in his stride and again doesn't take the easy points
With 4 penalties against the Brumbies in 3.5 minutes the tide turns, Moore is very rattled, Fardy on a final warning (and can't believe it) and the Force start to play some good rugby.
There's a real invigoration arising from the Brumbies actually getting some penalties (now a bit more even at F7:6B).
By end of 30 minutes, the Brumbies had had 93 Ruck Involvements (RIs) compared to the Force's 59.
(This is hardly a "normal" Force profile).
Almost exactly the same as in Round 1 - Brumbies 90 RIs v Waratahs 49 RIs.
(Penalties - Brumbies 8:5 Tahs)
Finally at 30:00 we have a game on our hands.
Over the next 50 minutes both teams score 2 tries and 14 points.
40 to 80 minutes - FOR ME IT'S ALL ABOUT PROTECTING THE HEAD AND NECK
Extremely pleased with the effort of the Force after the 30 minute mark.
I'm only going to focus on the contact around the head and neck - ALL OF WHICH DIDN'T RATE ANY INTEREST FROM ANDREW LEES OF HIS ARs (Although I also comment on the other blatant omissions by Lees)
31:58 - To'omua pulls Ainsley to the ground by his neck.
38:20 - Alexander lays on a blatant and cynical offside in the ruck. But gets forgiven by Lees as "that's OK as he just got his timing wrong!"
44:11 - Tessman tackles Pocock around head/neck and gets landed on by other players.
54:28 Shoulder cleanout by Smiler on DHP.
65:27 - Smiler strolls through ruck and disrupts new FH, Matt Hodgson, right in front of Lees who DOES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. Slows down Hodgson. Worse than anything that Hodgson had done earlier.
67:00 - On comes Robbie Coleman - the serial offender re grabs around head/neck.
70:51 – Robbie Coleman high contact and tackle assist around DHP head.
71:06 - Fardy tackles Hodgo around neck and pulls him to ground. Clear view to Lees. Results in TOW to Brumbies (?).
77:17 – Robbie Coleman tackles Hodgo around the neck (after Hodgson has chased the loose ball) and wrenches him to ground. 4-5 other Brumbies jump on Hodgson while Coleman's still holding around the neck. I'm not going to mention the possible outcomes from this type of activity. Ask a rugby player.
By my count the Force copped 4 Penalties after around 60 minutes and the Brumbies also copped 4 (but by my count above should have been 4 more and probably YC to either Fardy (for all of his naughty stuff early) and/or Robbie Coleman.
My expectation from referees is competency, fairness and consistency.
We all make mistakes. But there also needs to be accountability for actions or lack thereof.
AND THE POWERS THAT BE NEED TO EXERCISE SOME LEVEL OF "DUTY OF CARE' AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT STAMPING OUT THE GRABBING/WRENCHING OF PLAYERS AROUND THE NECK AND HEAD.
It's about real concerns about the inconsistency of dealing with tackles and cleanouts that are achieved by forcibly grabbing and/or wrenching players around the neck and/or head.
It's also a bit of a rant about what I consider was the totally inconsistent refereeing in last weekend's game between the Brumbies and Force in Perth.
The game resulted in a Brumbies 32:14 Force win.
AND a Penalty count of Brumbies 17:10 Force.
To recap on the Brumbies v Waratahs Round 1:
Brumbies 32:15 Waratahs
Penalty count: Brumbies 10:18 Waratahs.
This is a slightly toned down version of a number of posts on the twf fan blog.
"The Brumbies and The Cloak of Invisibility"
Preamble
An incomprehensible, incompetent and inconsistent effort of rugby refereeing by Andrew Lees and total lack of impact by his three assistants – Damien Mitchelmore, Michael Hogan and Ian Smith.
I marvel at just how Force’s captain Matt Hodgson held things together – especially during the opening 20 minutes.
Lees’ efforts seemed to totally ignore all of the areas which had been stated would be a focus this year.
To name just a few (more will follow as I collect the remaining stats in a 2nd watching):
00:40 – Moore lays on a blatent no arms, shoulder charge clean-out .
01:00 – Clear forward pass by Brumbies right in front of AR.
17:46 – Head tackle on Pocock
17:56 – Moore head tackle on Coleman
19:11 – Round-house arm swing by Arnold which luckily missed DH-P.
30:25 – V clear knock-on by Moore not called
31:34 – Head tackle on Ainsley32:21 – Very late tackle on Lance by Sio
44:13 – Tessman around head tackle on Pocock
71:06 – Fardy high tackle on Hodgson
A actually thought that after the first 2 rounds there was a genuine effort to stamp out shoulder charges and the head-high stuff that has the potential to cause serious injury.
If that was the case then nobody had informed Andrew Lees that that was the intent.
The Opening 10 Minutes
In just the first 66 seconds of the game, during which time Rod Kafer commented is the time when Lees was evidently stamping his mark on the game (mostly in giving the Force Panalties there were 5 flagrant non-rulings which were in clear view of Lees or the AR on the Eastern Side of NIB.
00:15 - Moore's crude shoulder charge and looping arm hit on Heath Tessman. (This type of act has been a YC in all games in the 2 Rounds). He has since been cleared.
00:54 - Fardy enters the ruck from the side right in front of Lees who has no problems with this.
1:00 - To'omua to Tomane long drifting forward pass which enable the Brumbies to eventually pressure the try line only to be kept out by great D by the Force.
1:00 - Alexander cleans out McCalman with a grab around his neck.
1:02 - Moore then lashes out with a backhand, which connects, to Cowan who had attempted a cleanout. In clear view of the AR.
Then within the next 5 minutes:
Approx 4 mins (no clock on screen) - Butler does a neck roll cleanout on Rasolea. (in clear view of the AR)
Approx 6 mins (no clock on screen) - Arnold does a neck roll on McCalman (results in Penalty on McCalman for no clean break after tackle).
It was clear that Moore and Fardy had been assigned "hit man" status early in the game AND during the time when most "good" refs do try and stamp their mark on the game, Lees just ignored/missed the above.
I reckon the practice of giving warning is just bollocks.
Super Rugby is played by professionals who all should know the rules. The serial transgressors play on the fact that they're going to get warnings while disrupting continuity of the game.
Give the warning in the shed pre-game and YC from the onset will stop this practice.
Moore should have been YC'd if not for the shoulder charge on Tessman at least for the very much intended backhand on Pek Cowan.
Lees should have stamped out the grabbing players around the neck during cleanouts.
If by nothing else by talking to both Captains after the first incident.
Weak refereeing which unfortunately seemed to be to the detriment of the Force and impetus that they were creating. Each time that the Force created any real momentum Lees stepped in.
All this is only from the 1st 10 minutes of watching the game for the 2nd time. In this 10 minutes Andrew Lees and the 2 x ARs + TMO were simply terrible - and they were only just warming up!
10 to 20 minutes. - more things that only a blind man couldn't see.
This is the 10 minutes when Lees is lecturing to Hodgson due to transgressions, and Cowan gets YC'd, yet the Brumbies apparently can do what they want without even a warning.
11:00 - Butler, Pocock and Kuridrani all grab McCalman by the neck at the breakdown.
11:40 - Could argue a good case that Fardy took the short lineout throw from Moore inside the 5 m.
(If the ball is taken in the air over the touch line then can throw the ball back into play provided that land back in field not in touch). Fardy only secured ther ball as he landed inside the 5m line and immediately passed the ball to Moore. Hard to say that the AR wasn't in a position to see this one.
13:25 - Moore grabs hold of Hodgson's shirt at breakdown to slow him down and prevent him moving to next contact. Lees probably unsighted and ball already moving. AR? Warning re foul play?
18:00 RHP has done a good cleanout and immediately Moore grabs hold of Coleman and pulls him on to of DHP. Still holding onto Coleman when once again immediately Lees penalises the Force for not rolling away. The only time Moore lets go of Coleman is after the whistle has blown.
19:11 - DHP has just failed to take a high ball and is falling to ground when Arnold misses him with a hay-maker. DHP lucky that this one didn't connect as was swung with serious intent. This one would have been in clear view of AR. Surely at least worthy of a warning??
By this time, Hodgson, and McCalman are showing some signs of frustration.
I suggest, NOT because of playing all that badly with a 0:10 scoreline but the fact that the Brumbies can apparently do no wrong or at least be held to account for their actions.
By this stage the penalty count was WF 7: 2 Brums.
BUT there had been plenty of opportunities for this to be much closer.
It appeared that the Brumbies had borrowed Richie McCaw's patented "Cloak of Invisibility" and using it to good effect.
Force v Brumbies - 20 to 30 Minutes - The Tide Turns
By 22:00 the score board had moved onto F 0:17 B with a well-worked try resulting from a great Fardy run and offload to To'omua.
However, at 20:51 Toua is well tackled by Morahan and brought to ground. Toua stands straight up without releasing the ball. Clear view of Lees and AR – both only a few m away!!
The painful rugby continued and at 24:00 Lees on cue calls a KO advantage to the Force "over" even before they get a chance to get over the gain line.
"Can we go back to the scrum please Sir?"
By this stage the Brumbies had had 85% possession.
26:00 - Fardy is penalised (P#1) for not supporting his weight. He is gobsmacked. The cloak has stopped working.
26:22 - Tessman has a little hold of Moore's shirt at a ruck. Moore in disbelief that he's been touched by an upstart.
26:49 - Penalty (P#2) goes against the Brumbies and eventually Cubelli gets YC'd for kicking the ball away. This results from Hodgson finally tired of the BS and tries to bring the kick to Lees' attention. Moore continues as his belligerent self and pushes Hodgson away with disdain. Hodgson doesn't want to lose the opportunity. Moore too is gobsmacked and just a bit rattled.
29:16 Scrum penalty (P#3) against the Brumbies!!!!???? Hodgson doesn't take the easy points.
29:30 Another penalty (P#4) against the Brumbies - Fardy for being off his feet (AGAIN) - 2nd in 5.5 minutes close to try line. AGAIN Hodgson is prevented getting access to the ball (for a quick start) as Moore picks it up and slowly walks across and places it at Lees' feet. Mouthing something like: "I don't know what HIS problem is!" The Sea of Blue were only too happy to explain it to both Moore and Lees. Hodgson takes the crap from Moore and Lees in his stride and again doesn't take the easy points
With 4 penalties against the Brumbies in 3.5 minutes the tide turns, Moore is very rattled, Fardy on a final warning (and can't believe it) and the Force start to play some good rugby.
There's a real invigoration arising from the Brumbies actually getting some penalties (now a bit more even at F7:6B).
By end of 30 minutes, the Brumbies had had 93 Ruck Involvements (RIs) compared to the Force's 59.
(This is hardly a "normal" Force profile).
Almost exactly the same as in Round 1 - Brumbies 90 RIs v Waratahs 49 RIs.
(Penalties - Brumbies 8:5 Tahs)
Finally at 30:00 we have a game on our hands.
Over the next 50 minutes both teams score 2 tries and 14 points.
40 to 80 minutes - FOR ME IT'S ALL ABOUT PROTECTING THE HEAD AND NECK
Extremely pleased with the effort of the Force after the 30 minute mark.
I'm only going to focus on the contact around the head and neck - ALL OF WHICH DIDN'T RATE ANY INTEREST FROM ANDREW LEES OF HIS ARs (Although I also comment on the other blatant omissions by Lees)
31:58 - To'omua pulls Ainsley to the ground by his neck.
38:20 - Alexander lays on a blatant and cynical offside in the ruck. But gets forgiven by Lees as "that's OK as he just got his timing wrong!"
44:11 - Tessman tackles Pocock around head/neck and gets landed on by other players.
54:28 Shoulder cleanout by Smiler on DHP.
65:27 - Smiler strolls through ruck and disrupts new FH, Matt Hodgson, right in front of Lees who DOES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. Slows down Hodgson. Worse than anything that Hodgson had done earlier.
67:00 - On comes Robbie Coleman - the serial offender re grabs around head/neck.
70:51 – Robbie Coleman high contact and tackle assist around DHP head.
71:06 - Fardy tackles Hodgo around neck and pulls him to ground. Clear view to Lees. Results in TOW to Brumbies (?).
77:17 – Robbie Coleman tackles Hodgo around the neck (after Hodgson has chased the loose ball) and wrenches him to ground. 4-5 other Brumbies jump on Hodgson while Coleman's still holding around the neck. I'm not going to mention the possible outcomes from this type of activity. Ask a rugby player.
By my count the Force copped 4 Penalties after around 60 minutes and the Brumbies also copped 4 (but by my count above should have been 4 more and probably YC to either Fardy (for all of his naughty stuff early) and/or Robbie Coleman.
My expectation from referees is competency, fairness and consistency.
We all make mistakes. But there also needs to be accountability for actions or lack thereof.
AND THE POWERS THAT BE NEED TO EXERCISE SOME LEVEL OF "DUTY OF CARE' AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT STAMPING OUT THE GRABBING/WRENCHING OF PLAYERS AROUND THE NECK AND HEAD.
