The controversial non-try
Sun, 08 May 2011 11:06
The Stormers play the Crusaders at Newlands. Gio Aplon puts a foot into touch and Kieran Read takes a quick throw-in which Dewaldt Duvenage intercepts and races away for a try. The referee awards the try. He then sees the assistant referee with his flag in the air and goes off to consult him. The assistant says (twice) to the referee: "Foot in the field of play. Advantage applies." The referee cancels the try and awards a line-out to the Crusaders.
Law 6.B.5 (d) When to lower the flag. When the ball is thrown in, the touch judge or assistant referee must lower the flag, with the following exceptions:
Exception 1: When the player throwing in puts any part of either foot in the field of play, the touch judge or assistant referee keeps the flag up.
The assistant referee did the right thing in keeping his flag up. It is what his job description requires. But he also said: "Advantage applies."
Does advantage apply?
Law 8 Advantage
DEFINITIONS
The Law of advantage takes precedence over most other Laws and its purpose is to make play more continuous with fewer stoppages for infringements. Players are encouraged to play to the whistle despite infringements by their opponents.
That implies that advantage happens when there is an infringement.
Is putting the foot into the field of play an infringement?
Law 19.6 HOW THE THROW-IN IS TAKEN
The player taking the throw-in must stand at the correct place. The player must not step into the field of play when the ball is thrown. The ball must be thrown straight, so that it travels at least 5 metres along the line of touch before it first touches the ground or touches or is touched by a player.
Stepping into the field of play is wrong. The throw-in is incorrect.
Law 19.7 INCORRECT THROW-IN
(a) If the throw-in at a line-out is incorrect, the opposing team has the choice of throwing in at a line-out or a scrum on the 15-metre line. If they choose the throw-in to the line-out and it is again incorrect, a scrum is formed. The team that took the first throw-in throws in the ball.
There is a sanction for an incorrect throw-in. It is the same sanction as there is for a crooked throw-in, i.e. the option of a scrum or a line-out.
Could advantage then be played?
Law 8.3 WHEN THE ADVANTAGE LAW IS NOT APPLIED
(a) Referee contact. Advantage must not be applied when the ball, or a player carrying it, touches the referee.
(b) Ball out of tunnel. Advantage must not be applied when the ball comes out of either end of the tunnel at a scrum without having been played.
(c) Wheeled scrum. Advantage must not be applied when the scrum is wheeled through more than 90 degrees (so that the middle line has passed beyond a position parallel to the touchline).
(d) Collapsed scrum. Advantage must not be applied when a scrum collapses. The referee must blow the whistle immediately.
(e) Player lifted in the air. Advantage must not be applied when a player in a scrum is lifted in the air or forced upwards out of the scrum. The referee must blow the whistle immediately.
(f) After the ball has been made dead. Advantage cannot be played after the ball has been made dead.
None of these applies to a foot-fault at the line-out. Therefore advantage should apply, just as it does for a crooked throw-in.
Giving the line-out throw to the Crusaders was palpably wrong.
Certainly it makes no sense that a team should benefit from its own mistake, as was the case here.
But that is not all. There is a funny word used when talking about the foot in the field of play at a quick throw.
Law 19.2 (e) At a quick throw-in, if the player throws the ball in the direction of the opposition’s goal line or if the ball does not travel at least 5 metres to the 5-metre line along or behind the line of touch before it touches the ground or a player, or if the player steps into the field of play when the ball is thrown, then the quick throw-in is disallowed. The opposing team chooses to throw in at either a line-out where the quick throw-in was attempted, or a scrum on the 15-metre line at
that place. If they too throw in the ball incorrectly at the line-out, a scrum is formed on the 15-metre line. The team that first threw in the ball throws in the ball at the scrum.
The strange word is disallowed. What does it mean.
You will find it, too, here:
Law 21.8 (f) Preventing the free kick. If the opposing team charge and prevent the free kick being taken, the kick is disallowed. Play restarts with a scrum at the mark. The opposing team throw in the ball.
There it says what should happen after disallowed. In Law 19.2 (e) it does not say what should happen after disallowed, which makes it fair enough to take it in conjunction with Laws 19.6 ands 19.7.
In the case of the free kick prevented,the opposition did something good to prevent the ball from being brought into play with a kick, which was the way to bring it into play. In this case the opposition did not prevent the ball from being brought into play with a throw which was the way to bring it into play. It was the thrower who got it wrong all on his own.
It is interesting and the SANZAR referee selectors have referred the matter to the International Rugby Board.
Watch this space!
