Blues prop Ofa Tuungafasi is yellow carded during the Super Rugby Aotearoa rugby match between the Blues and the Crusaders held at Eden Park. Photo / Brett Phibbs.
Blues prop Ofa Tuungafasi is yellow carded during the Super Rugby Aotearoa rugby match between the Blues and the Crusaders held at Eden Park. Photo / Brett Phibbs.
There was a feeling that struck early in the recent Blues v Crusaders Super Rugby Aotearoa match at Eden Park that maybe referee Paul Williams just wasn't the right person for that particular job on that particular day.
No one's perfect, clearly, and officials make mistakes like anyone elseon a playing field, but Williams had gone into the match as a controversial figure due to several high-profile and, frankly, baffling errors as a television match official during the two games the previous weekend.
Hanging over him were a couple of poor decisions for the Crusaders in their match against the Chiefs in Christchurch including the bizarre Richie Mo'unga forward pass incident (Williams ruled it wasn't due to Brad Weber's intervention, when it clearly was), and a day later his ruling that Akira Ioane passed forward to his brother Rieko for the Blues against the Highlanders at Eden Park.
Again, anyone who has a basic grasp of the laws of the game knew it was the wrong call and it was another described as such by referees' boss Bryce Lawrence.
So for him to be publicly backed by Lawrence and selected to control the blockbuster on Sunday between the two best teams in the competition was brave at best and a bad error at worst. Hindsight suggests giving Williams the whistle was the latter.
Referee Paul Williams during the round 3 Super Rugby match between the Blues and the Crusaders at Eden Park on February 14, 2020. Photo / Getty Images.
And that's because every decision he made and every penalty he gave (or didn't) was going to be severely scrutinised by the two sets of rival supporters – probably unfairly so - and a couple in the first quarter of the Crusaders' eventual 43-27 victory over the Blues suggested his instincts aren't quite up to it at the moment. Unfortunately, his handling of the Sevu Reece incident in the second half was on a different level altogether.
The warning signs came as early as the fourth minute when the Blues won a scrum penalty against the best set piece in the competition. Rightly excited by the success, prop Alex Hodgman overstepped the mark when twice patting the penalised Michael Alaalatoa in the face – right in front of Williams and Codie Taylor, who protested to no avail. Nothing in it.
Ten minutes later, the Crusaders won a scrum penalty while defending their line and Taylor did the same thing to a Blues front-rower (obscured from the TV cameras). This time it's unacceptable to Williams, who says something like "those sorts of actions can escalate matters". Quite. He reverses the penalty and the Blues score in the left corner.
Those sorts of inconsistencies can exacerbate frustrations on the field – indeed, they can escalate matters - and lead to players second-guessing officials, and his treatment of the Reece incident after the Crusaders wing was penalised for taking out Patrick Tuipulotu in the air was further proof that a world-class match official is going through a bad patch of form.
Match referee Paul Williams talks with Crusaders captain Scott Barrett during the Super Rugby Aotearoa rugby match between the Blues and the Crusaders. Photo / Getty Images.
Reece was body slammed after being flipped over the horizontal by Blues hooker Kurt Eklund in a move which has no place on a rugby field. What was troubling for the viewer and hopefully referees boss Lawrence was that it again happened in front of Williams and that he was not prepared to consider any protests from Crusaders captain Scott Barrett. "No, no, no, no," Williams said, before adding: "Go. Move."
It was only television match official Brendon Pickerill's intervention which led Williams to reconsider and penalise Eklund. A review found Eklund should have been sent off and he is now serving a three-match ban.
There has never been a tougher time to be a top referee in New Zealand.
They are under pressure to uphold the letter of the law while allowing the game to flow in an entertaining manner. Meanwhile, the new "captain's challenge" law trial allowing skippers to ask for a review just adds another layer of pressure and scrutiny. Blues assistant coach Tom Coventry for one feels is just too much and I'm inclined to agree.
Let's help take the pressure off and let in-form referees follow their instincts. That includes rewarding officials who are right for the job. Unfortunately, Williams wasn't. He needs a break and hopefully Lawrence will give him one.
