Worst Officiating Decisions of the 2011 Rugby World Cup

07-11-2011 03:54PM #1

Hi Guys,

I am just curious at to what you all thought of

1. the refereeing at the Rugby World Cup &

2. what are some of the worst refereeing decisions that you remember?

3. What (if any) should the IRB do to improve the officiating for future tournaments?

All replies welcome. Thank you!

07-11-2011 03:57PM

1. very poor overall
2. its not a single decision but the final was a joke nice to see new zealand win it at last they deserve it for being so good for so long but france werent given a chance.

07-11-2011 04:00PM

I will start with Sam Warburton's red card against France which I believe the referee should have used his own discretion (17mins into a RWC semi-final) and awarded a yellow card.

And in the same match, I don't believe that Wales should have been awarded the penalty that Halfpenny missed by inches as Luke Charteris was playing the ball on the ground in my opinion.

Match highlights - http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/video/index.html

07-11-2011 04:08PM

Quarter-Final: Australia V Wales.

Shane Williams' try was about 3-5mts forward; and what makes it worse is the Hook releases the ball on the 10mt line which makes it more obvious... (Sorry Shane, if you reading this!)

Match highlights - http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/video/index.html

07-11-2011 04:11PM

07438991 wrote: »

I will start with Sam Warburton's red card against France which I believe the referee should have used his own discretion (17mins into a RWC semi-final) and awarded a yellow card.

And in the same match, I don't believe that Wales should have been awarded the penalty that Halfpenny missed by inches as Luke Charteris was playing the ball on the ground in my opinion.

Match highlights - http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/video/index.html

dont get me wrong i was upset that he went off it ruined a good game for me (and stopped wales from winning the tournament in my opinion) but if he deserved a red he deserved a red be it a world cup semi final or an autumn international it shouldnt matter.

07-11-2011 04:13PM

07438991 wrote: »

I will start with Sam Warburton's red card against France which I believe the referee should have used his own discretion (17mins into a RWC semi-final) and awarded a yellow card.

And in the same match, I don't believe that Wales should have been awarded the penalty that Halfpenny missed by inches as Luke Charteris was playing the ball on the ground in my opinion.

Match highlights - http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/video/index.html

The Safety of the players >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> the "occasion".

I think if referees were to start balancing decisions on such things it would be an utter disaster. We already have instances where 2 points down with no time on the clock, referees refuse to award stonewall penalties because it would give kickers an opportunity to win the game. Hey Craig!

07-11-2011 04:16PM

Good Point Fletcher Shaggy Teammate!

It's just that some argue that there have been worse tackles or similar tackles which have ended up with less harsh sanctions.

07-11-2011 04:21PM

07438991 wrote: »

Some argue that there have been worse tackles or similar tackles which have ended up with less harsh sanctions.

they'd be right, but that doesn't make the decision incorrect. Anyway, there was a monsterous thread on it, so I don't think opening up the debate is a good idea.

Rolland has precedent in awarding the red card for a similar situation, and he was backed up by the laws and directives clearly voiced by O'Brien.

07-11-2011 04:22PM

07438991 wrote: »

Some argue that there have been worse tackles or similar tackles which have ended up with less harsh sanctions.

this is true but while maby a red card was a bit harsh you cant say it was outrageious to be honest i think the ref deserves a pat on the back for having the balls to give a red for what he felt was a very bad tackle

CatFromHue · 07-11-2011 04:25PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Rolland has precedent in awarding the red card for a similar situation, and he was backed up by the laws and directives clearly voiced by O'Brien.

Warburton himself had no problem with the red either.

What's the point of this thread? To have a go at refs so that whatever decision they make in the future will be undermined? So that if a ref makes a decision against our team we already have an inbuilt response!

Refs are human, they will make mistakes like me, like you, and like BOD.

GerM · 07-11-2011 04:26PM

The refereeing of the scrum in our game against Australia. Yes, we were on top but the decisions for our two three pointers from the scrums were very questionable.

Worst single performance has to be Nigel Owens in the quarter finals for NZ against Argentina. Some shocking calls. He should have been demoted for his performance and was instead awarded a role in the final.

tolosenc · 07-11-2011 04:26PM

07438991 wrote: »

Good Point Fletcher Shaggy Teammate!

It's just that some argue that there have been worse tackles or similar tackles which have ended up with less harsh sanctions.

Doesn't mean those less harsh sanctions were correct.

This has been done to death, and the overwhelming opinion on this forum is that Rolland got it right.

For me, the final was an utter disgrace. If it was reffed properly France would have won.

cython · 07-11-2011 04:27PM

07438991 wrote: »

Some argue that there have been worse tackles or similar tackles which have ended up with less harsh sanctions.

In that context, the refs imposing the sanctions for the "worse tackles or similar tackles" were in fact the ones to be credited with poor decisions, as the instructions and laws were there, but this really doesn't need to be done again, surely?!

07438991 wrote: »

Quarter-Final: Australia V Wales.

Shane Williams' try was about 3-5mts forward; and what makes it worse is the Hook releases the ball on the 10mt line which makes it more obvious... (Sorry Shane, if you reading this!)

Match highlights - http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/video/index.html

Since neither Australia nor Wales made it to the final (and a requirement of a semi would be that one of them would

), I have fixed your post

As for an example of a poor decision, Bowe's try that was disallowed because of the "forward" pass from SOB. Sure, the result didn't hinge on it or anything, but it was still a very poor call.

chupacabra · 07-11-2011 04:32PM

Honestly I thought the refereeing was about the same as it was in 07. Few mares (final) but overall it was no different to how its been for the last 4 years. I have to say though that while the reffing of the scrum improved marginally the length of the calls is EXCRUTIATING.

Crouch............. Touch............ Paaaaaaauuuuuuuusssssse

engage.

:mad:

tolosenc · 07-11-2011 04:34PM

cython wrote: »

Since neither Australia nor Wales made it to the final (and a requirement of a semi would be that one of them would ), I have fixed your post

It was the Bronze Final, actually, seeing as both of them made the semis, which would mean they couldn't have met in the quarters...

07-11-2011 04:38PM

Nicely spotted Cython! Good attention to detail - A+

cython · 07-11-2011 04:39PM

tolosenc wrote: »

It was the Bronze Final, actually, seeing as both of them made the semis, which would mean they couldn't have met in the quarters...

D'oh! I thought there was something wrong with what I was typing, since we were in Wales quarter, but for some reason I told that voice in the back of my mind to shut up - really should listen to it more often!

07-11-2011 04:43PM

with regards to your 3rd point and this is a little bit off topic and has been done to death apologies i think officiating will never be perfect but the 3rd tear nations schedules are the only thing that really stood out that needs to be fixed immediately

07-11-2011 04:43PM

ooooo worst decision was the samoan wing getting fined for his gumshield

07-11-2011 05:09PM

What about a gumshield?

I thought a Samoan players was in trouble over tweeting Nigel Owens is a sh1te ref and a racist prick? And when he was brought in front of a disciplinary committee, he complained about the match schedules for non-tier 1 unions and the judge said that the scheduling complaint was valid and the IRB would fix this in the next RWC... What was wrong with the fixtures?

07-11-2011 05:13PM

07438991 wrote: »

What about a gumshield?

I thought a Samoan players was in trouble over tweeting Nigel Owens is a sh1te ref and a racist prick? And when he was brought in front of a disciplinary committee, he complained about the match schedules for non-tier 1 unions and the judge said that the scheduling complaint was valid and the IRB would fix this in the next RWC... What was wrong with the fixtures?

http://www.rugbynetwork.net/boards/read/s103.htm?106,12745311

for wearing a "branded" mouthguard

the likes of japan had 4 and 5 day turnarounds where as ireland nz england etc had 7

07-11-2011 05:24PM

What was wrote on it? It's a form of ambush marketing. The sponsors would be upset if it was one of their rival companies that was getting free advertisement.

07-11-2011 05:36PM

07438991 wrote: »

What was wrote on it? It's a form of ambush marketing. The sponsors would be upset if it was one of their rival companies that was getting free advertisement.

im not gona lie im not 100 percent sure but form what i can tell given its the same one he wears for his club i get the impression its just the gumshields manafacturer

Brendan97 · 07-11-2011 06:50PM

Richie McCaw camping out on the oppostion's side of the ruck and no referee spotting it

molloyjh · 07-11-2011 07:06PM

Overall the refereeing didn't seem any better or worse than expected, with the exception of the final which was an utter disgrace. Worst refereeing decision was without a doubt "the Kaino incident". The guy goes in from the side, off his feet, plays the ball, knocks it on all in front of the ref and Joubert calls "Ball Out!". Shameful is right Franno!

matthew8 · 07-11-2011 07:39PM

Worst call has to be Paul Williams red card. It was extremely harsh, and very much provoked by Rossouw, who dived after continually punching Williams.

irishbucsfan · 07-11-2011 10:25PM

Really can't understand how people still think Warburton's card was anything less than a red card after he himself said it was the right decision.

Lawrence was rubbish in his quarter, Rolland was rubbish in the semi (apart from the red decision) and Joubert was rubbish in the final, so I think I'll always be left with the impression that the officiating in this world cup was worse than it actually was.

08-11-2011 03:29AM

molloyjh wrote: »

Overall the refereeing didn't seem any better or worse than expected, with the exception of the final which was an utter disgrace. Worst refereeing decision was without a doubt "the Kaino incident". The guy goes in from the side, off his feet, plays the ball, knocks it on all in front of the ref and Joubert calls "Ball Out!". Shameful is right Franno!

i saw that "kaino incident" never mind the world cup was possible the most blatant incident of a ref turning a blind eye in rugby history

Reloc8 · 08-11-2011 09:59AM

There were a few howlers in the pool games.

Worst game in the context of materiality to outcome of a match was the Kaino non-decision by Joubert in the final.

Absolute shocker if you got it in a J5 game.

JustinDee · 08-11-2011 11:20AM

matthew8 wrote: »

Worst call has to be Paul Williams red card. It was extremely harsh, and very much provoked by Rossouw, who dived after continually punching Williams.

???

Brussouw was on his feet. Williams unprovoked clung to him illegally while prostate on ruckpile. Brussouw understandably continually hit Williams' illegal clinging on to him. Williams reacted and struck him in the face.

Striking an opponent in that manner is a no-no hence the red card.

JustinDee · 08-11-2011 11:22AM

07438991 wrote: »

I will start with Sam Warburton's red card against France which I believe the referee should have used his own discretion (17mins into a RWC semi-final) and awarded a yellow card.

A card is non-contextual ie. sanction does not depend on the game or how far into that game.

Worst Officiating Decisions of the 2011 Rugby World Cup

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