Caleb Clarke of the Blues (R) is sent off with a red card by referee Paul Williams during the round seven Super Rugby Pacific match. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
Caleb Clarke of the Blues (R) is sent off with a red card by referee Paul Williams during the round seven Super Rugby Pacific match. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
Newstalk ZB lead rugby commentator Elliott Smith analyses the latest from the world of rugby.
An observation...
It's time for you, me, the man and his dog in the stand and whoever else, to accept that a sending off in rugby is not the same as it was 10, 20, 50 or even 97 years ago when Cyril Brownlie was marched against England for a boot-to-head stomp at Twickenham.
Red cards are now a part of modern rugby – and will be until the tackle or cleanout techniques change and it's accepted any head contact will result in dismissal.
Nepo Laulala and Shilo Klein got sent off for lazy technique and under the red card threshold of World Rugby's Head Injury Process they are clear reds. (An idea for Sky: a graphic on screen showing the process might be helpful as the referees are deliberating).
Caleb Clarke's mid-air collision against Moana Pasifika may also seem like what we would have once called a rugby "incident", but the modern game doesn't have a place for such interpretation. In incidents like Clarke's, it goes against their instincts as rugby players not to make a play for the ball, especially in a split-second decision.
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It may get to the point where players have to curb their natural instincts. That may not be the game we want to see, but it's the game that is upon us.
A question....
Why is it that Northern Hemisphere fans seem to have accepted this red card a lot quicker than their Southern Hemisphere counterparts?
An online thread of supporters of United Kingdom persuasion thought Clarke's incident was an undoubted red card. Back here, fans are finding that hard to digest. We seem to want to play one game while the north is playing a different tune. That alone gets us into dangerous territory.
Blues player Caleb Clarke connects with Moana Pasifika player Tomasi Alosio during the Moana Pasifika v Blues Super Rugby Pacific rugby union match. Photo / Photosport.co.nz
A suggestion...
World Rugby could help bridge the perceived difference by exchanging referees between domestic or franchise competitions. Why not have Wayne Barnes come down and officiate the Crusaders against the Blues or Chiefs versus the Brumbies, or send Ben O'Keeffe up to take charge of some Top 14 games or English Premiership?
That's not to bemoan the standard of refereeing in Super Rugby which has been by-and-large good this year, but real or imagined, there remain differences in approach between Northern and Southern Hemisphere referees and where various lines are drawn.
Rugby is a nuanced sport – where the official is given more power to interpret than many other sports - and to only have 'foreign' officials at test level doesn't help players or the officials with a complete understanding of how the game is played or refereed in different parts of the world.
It's even more important to consider given the removal of South African referees from Super Rugby.
A prediction...
The Highlanders will still make the Super Rugby playoffs. Eight teams make it. They're winless through six. They ran the table against Australian teams in 2021. Wouldn't surprise if they did it again.
An explanation...
One piece of normality returns this weekend with the All Blacks Sevens rejoining the World Sevens series. I'm intrigued to see how they slot back in, eight months on from their last real competition at the Olympics when they took a silver medal, and more than two years since the Series was suspended. It might take them a while to find their feet again, especially with inspirational co-captains Tim Mikkelson and Scott Curry both out.
