Rugby: Time for a change on sideline

Gavin Benney believes change can and has to be made to the behaviour on the sidelines of senior club rugby. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Sideline etiquette is a hot-button issue in New Zealand, but here in Northland the issue lies more at senior level than at the juniors.

Northland Rugby Union put initiatives in place at the start of last season to improve the behaviour of people at junior games.

These initiatives, according to former policeman Gavin Benney, have been a roaring success.

"We decided that enough was enough. The NRU employed me as a field manager and we put spectators and coaches behind the goalposts," he said.

"My role was to walk around and keep an eye on things. I had to be quite proactive but there was a big change this year."

But while the issue has been nearly stamped out at junior level, the bigger problem is at senior games. This is causing fewer people to take up refereeing.

The NRU has a code of ethics in which clubs are meant to provide an events manager to control the crowds, players and coaches.

However, Benney said clubs aren't holding up their end.

"We have had a referee threatened with a knife, and (they) are levelled with accusations of cheating, which is not acceptable," he said.

"Referees don't want to have a whinge and they still need to be held accountable for their performance, but there are issues with abuse."

Refereeing numbers are a nationwide issue, but Northland has lost 11 senior rugby whistle-blowers in the last year.

Benney said the problem is in the development of referees.

"We have no up-and-comers. The average age of referees here is 52," he said. "The standard of refereeing hasn't been the best here and we are working hard to make improvements, but there simply aren't enough refs. There are incentives to take up refereeing. It can be fun, it is good for fitness and there is a reasonable pathway to a professional career."

There are ideas floating about how the state of sidelines at the senior level can be improved, however, club buy-in is needed. Benney feels the clubs' selection of prospective refs is vital to this improvement. "Captains and coaches need to be forerunners. Clubs need to pick leaders, not just any person," he said. "If the clubs don't buy in, we will lose more referees."

He believes the senior scene can replicate the successes of their junior counterparts. "People say you can't change a culture, but we can and need to."