Referee Mathieu Raynal stole the show with his controversial call. Photo / Photosport
Referee Mathieu Raynal stole the show with his controversial call. Photo / Photosport
Six talking points from the All Blacks' hugely controversial 39-37 Bledisloe Cup victory over the Wallabies in Melbourne.
Was the referee right?
"How would you feel," Justin Marshall reasonably asked, "if it had happened to us?" The answer, if we're being honest, is that we'd feel as outragedas Wallaby great Tim Horan, who called it "ridiculous" that referee Mathieu Raynal decided in the last minute to turn the ball over for an All Blacks scrum, because Bernard Foley was running the clock down.
When Jordie Barrett then scored the winning try, cue rugby fans forming two implacably opposing groups. Backing the Aussies were those who felt another damned French referee had made a terrible error. On this side of the Tasman were those, like me, who felt tough luck sucker, when Foley thought he could ignore the Frenchman's demands to hurry up.
Referee Mathieu Raynal stole the show with his controversial call. Photo / Photosport
The problem really is that for too long referees have been pathetically weak when it comes to time wasting.
In July we saw the cynicism of an Irish team dawdling to lineouts in the second test in Dunedin, making sure their beefy forwards had plenty of time to get their collective breath back. At the time it was infuriating to see South African referee Jaco Peyper just yapping at them like a Bichon Frise in footy boots.
Was it unfortunate that the first international referee to get tough with time wasters did so at a time so crucial it decided the match? Yes. Should every test ref now steer clear of speeding things up at less vital moments in the game? Please let that answer be no.
Did the All Blacks deserve to win?
Sure, just as the Wallabies would have deserved a victory if their defence had held in the last minute. This was the craziest see-saw Bledisloe match since the greatest test I've seen, the classic 39-35 All Blacks win in Sydney in 2000, which even the losing captain John Eales says was "the most extraordinary game I've ever played in".
Dealing with losing captain Sam Cane and midfield general David Havili so early in Melbourne was impressive from the All Blacks, but so was how Australia clawed back from being 31-13 down after 54 minutes. The controversy at the death shouldn't obscure the excitement of a match where the passion of both teams meant victory was never assured.
As has happened in too many games this year the All Blacks backline defence was wrecked by players running out of the line, which leaves inviting gaps for the opposition.
Not all of the lapses in Melbourne can be attributed to the injuries to Havili and Quinn Tupaea. Caleb Clarke is a fantastic runner with the ball, but Thursday night wasn't the first time this season he was caught out of position when he was desperately needed on defence.
This week will be a busy time for All Blacks defensive coach Scott McLeod, as he works to drill more discipline into his gifted, but occasionally wayward, backs.
When the card should be red
Quinn Tupaea was forced to leave the field with a left knee injury. Photo / Photosport
Few citings have been more deserved than the one for Wallaby forward Darcy Swain after an act that had the potential to end Quinn Tupaea's career.
Man of the match
Seeing Pete Samu fight his way from being a bit player at the Crusaders in 2016 to being a key loose forward in 2017 and 2018, I knew he was a class act. But his stunning play at No 7 for Australia in Melbourne was a step up again. The brilliant try he initiated, and then finished off, in the 72nd minute was the perfect illustration of his speed, aggressiveness and rugby smarts.
Try of the match
A toss up between Samu's and the return of Will Jordan to the scoring circle in the 54th minute. The longer Jordan's test career runs, the more he shows why he deserves to be ranked with greats of the game like Christian Cullen and Jeff Wilson.
His latest, and 20th, All Blacks try included one spell-binding moment when his gaze flicked from the ball, still in the air from a Beauden Barrett kick, to Australian fullback Andrew Kellaway. In less than a heartbeat Jordan had the skill and composure to catch the ball cleanly, and simultaneously swerve past Kellaway. My apologies for burdening Jordan with the word genius, but I can't think of another way to describe his attacking gifts.
