What a farce !!!!!

First topic message reminder :

Look, I know people are going to jump on me for this, but seriously we need to sort out the joke that was reffing the Blues v Glasgow game last night. We need to try and showcase our young league and make it appeal to people who are not quite on board, but if I was one of those people and I decided to watch that game last night, I would have just walked away, why, because that ref last night was nothing but an ammature, how can you make such blatantly bad calls on such a regular accurance over eighty minutes, that ref last night totally ruined the game. Things like this need to be looked at because at the moment these incompetent refs are ruining our league.

Look, I know that the refs have a hard job to do, and they get unfair critisism from fans and pundits alike, but, and I mean BUT, the referee last Saturday night was nowhere near the standard needed for a pro level game, redStag, you are a ref are you not ? A freind of mine who is doing his level one exams for refereeing told me that the ref on last Saturday night was not even up to the level, in his opinion, to ref a thirds league, he was totally out of his depth, this is not what we should have to except in todays high profile, cameras everywhere environment.

Dowlais,

Its like everything. Sometimes fans over exaggerate referees "mistakes" other times referees are indeed really dreadful.

I didnt see the Cardiff and Glasgow game. However I saw the Edinburgh and Treviso game and I saw Leinster v Munster. In both of those I was not impressed with the refereeing at all.

However it wasn't Nigel Owens or Wayne Barnes or Alan Rolland or George Clancy refereeing. It was:

Giuseppe Vivarini (3rd match as a referee)
Matteo Liperini (1st match as a referee)
Leighton Hodges (20th match as a referee)

An inexperienced referee will make mistakes same as an inexperienced player.

For what its worth I think its very naiive for a friend who is not even level one to make a judgement on what level these people are capable of refereeing to.

Why is the Rabo seen as a training ground for new Refs?

red_stag wrote:Dowlais,

Its like everything. Sometimes fans over exaggerate referees "mistakes" other times referees are indeed really dreadful.

I didnt see the Cardiff and Glasgow game. However I saw the Edinburgh and Treviso game and I saw Leinster v Munster. In both of those I was not impressed with the refereeing at all.

However it wasn't Nigel Owens or Wayne Barnes or Alan Rolland or George Clancy refereeing. It was:

Giuseppe Vivarini (3rd match as a referee)
Matteo Liperini (1st match as a referee)
Leighton Hodges (20th match as a referee)

An inexperienced referee will make mistakes same as an inexperienced player.

For what its worth I think its very naiive for a friend who is not even level one to make a judgement on what level these people are capable of refereeing to.

Stagg surely it is first and third matches as professional refs

What is the standard in the rabo country domestic leagues. there must be some in the S10 and other places that are top of the pile in their leagues.

I do also know you can't have refs as old as they are in soccer as they have to be at the action the whole time not just be able to see like in soccer.

Brendan, I meant in the RaboDirect Pro 12. They have of course lots of experience at domestic levels.

What is also difficult for Italian referees and Scottish referees is having to talk proper English to the players.

and understanding the TMO!

HERSH wrote:and understanding the TMO!

I think a bigger issue is fans and especially commentators not understanding how the TMO works.

Thats also true

red_stag wrote:

HERSH wrote:and understanding the TMO!

I think a bigger issue is fans and especially commentators not understanding how the TMO works.

And ...not understanding the Laws!

MrsP wrote:

red_stag wrote:

HERSH wrote:and understanding the TMO!

I think a bigger issue is fans and especially commentators not understanding how the TMO works.

And ...not understanding the Laws!

Ah sure nobody understands them things.

Speak for yerself!

red_stag wrote:Maybe the mentality of assistant referees needs adjusting.

At the moment the attitude is that they should get touch, kicks at goal and flagging foul play right. Anything else is a bonus.

I think you're right there. They focus in on too narrow a role. They are there to help the referee and are meant to working together as a team, a little bit of encouragement, or role expansion, here and you might be able to get a big gain in enforcement (which ultimately forces teams to behave).

What if the refs have tasers and every time a player concedes a penalty, he gets given an electric shock.

Luckless Pedestrian wrote:What if the refs have tasers and every time a player concedes a penalty, he gets given an electric shock.

How would that help the ref's decision making?

Might make some of the more stop/start matches more entertaining but?

I have no idea, MrsP. I'm tired.

and give the players a taser each too - so that they can give a ref a startle if he consistently gets in the way, as many of them seem to have a penchant for!

Hmm. Just about the easiest decision for a ref to make is to spot a diagonal feed.

Just look at the consequences of their magnificence of their charity:

Dominant scrums are cheated.
Hooking is a lost art.

Not helped of course by unbindable modern shirts resulting in scrum collapses.

All this of course due to the law formulators and their judiciary treating symptoms rather than underlying illnesses.

While it is the most obvious thing in the world, should the referee be tasked with that, or is it an easy thing that could be left with a touch judge? The referee has to watch;
- binding at both sides of the scrum (impossible)
- binding of no.8 and flankers both ends of the scrum (easy to catch)
- angles of drive of each prop (straight, in, up, down)
- binding of second rows (impossible)
- wheeling (tricky)
- lateral shift, then drive (more of a french thing)
- straightness of feed (easy catch)
- is the defending scrumhalf onside
- is the ball out

It's alot of stuff. Maybe give binding on the other side of the scrum and the feed being straight to the touch judge?