Morrison on refereeing

Ed Morrison, the Head of Elite Referees' Development in England, spoke recently about English refereeing in to top divisions, following the accusations of incompetence levelled at them by Brendan Venter, the Saracens' coach.

After Saracens' defeat at the hands of Leicester Tigers, Venter was critical of the performance of the referee in that match and the performances of English referees in general, especially at the tackle.

England's RFU are to hold an inquiry into Venter's allegations and the possibility of his bringing the game into disrepute.

The RFU produced a podcast of an interview with Morrison, of which the following is a transcript.

Asked about the state of refereeing in England at a time when referees are increasingly under the microscope, Morrison said that he was absolutely confident that England had the referees capable of handling modern rugby.

"We have a tradition of producing top class, world class referees. I think that that tradition will continue for many, many years to come.

"As the game goes it changes -  almost weekly, not annually - we are aware that we need to adapt to that.

"As a Union we are incredibly fortunate to call on people like Brian Campsall and Tony Spreadbury, two top-class international referees in their own right. They work incredibly hard to pass on their knowledge, understanding and expertise to the next generation of referees."

Asked about the post-match analysis, Morrison said: "One of the new initiatives in the last six months has been the elite hub that is available to all our officials, including assistant referees, whereby everybody has the facility to download games they have been involved in or teams they are going to officiate the following week. Everybody now has access that access.

"In terms of the game review, what happens after a match is that each referee will approach his coach, Brian or Tony, and go through the match in great detail. Each referee will fill out self-review form. Part of their development is what they see. What we do not want to do is produce is a bunch of clones. We want each one to express  his own personalty within a framework.

"They will sit down on a Monday or Tuesday with their coach and go through the game in great detail. They are  assessed by performance reviewers, the like as Steve Lander and Paul Bridgman who are both IRB assessors with huge experience. So we collate a lot of data, information on their performance. The important part of the process is developing them and making these guys better so that they referee slightly better the following week."

Asked about the breakdown, the onus on referees and the possibility of collective responsibility, Morrison said: "I think that to imply that one person is responsible for what happens in anything that happens on a field of play is foolish.

"Everybody has a responsibility. Certainly we have a huge responsibility to the play in this. The breakdown has always been a key area. It's always been a contentious area. It's now more competitive with the IRB's Ruling 4 [See below], so that we've got more of a competition going for the ball  now and that makes the job of the players and the referees that much more difficult.

"We try to improve our element in that phase of play.

"We sat down at the end of November to review of six or seven weeks of the season. We came to the conclusion that there were too many penalties for holding on, penalties against the side in possession of the ball.

"We put some clips together and visited all 12 clubs on 15 and 16 December. What we basically said was that if a player makes a poor decision and is isolated, and an opponent is on his feet and clearly has hands on the ball and is trying to lift it, it will be a penalty. What we had seen that players were being rewarded  with a holding-on penalty when they weren't trying to lift the ball.

"We went to the clubs with the clips and discussed the matter with the coaches and the response of all was incredibly positive, all 12 clubs to what we were saying, which was basically that the team in possession had to have a moment to release the ball and retain possession without undermining the defender to win the ball.

"We have had two weeks of matches and already I have seen a reduction in the number of holding-on penalties."

Ruling 4

The relevant paragraph in the ruling below is:  Providing a player from either side on their feet after a tackle comply with all aspects of Law 15 and have the ball in their hands prior to contact with an opposition player on his feet those players may continue with possession of the ball even if a player from the opposition makes contact with those players in possession of the ball.

Ruling: 4: 2009

Ruling Request from the NZRU and ARU Law 15 and 16

Law 15 6 (b) states:
After a tackle any players on their feet may attempt to gain possession by taking the ball from the ball carriers possession.

Law 16.1 (b) states:
How can a ruck form? Players are on their feet. At least one player must be in physical contact with an opponent. The ball is on the ground.

Law 16.4 (b) states:
(b) Players must not handle the ball in a ruck.

When a player has complied with Law 15 6 (b), is on his feet and playing the ball after a tackle and is then joined by an opposition player on his feet so that the situation outlined in 16 1 (b) occurs, can the player who has complied with Law 15 6 (b) continue to play the ball with his hands or at what point does he have to release the ball?

This does not appear to be covered by Law.

Ruling

Law 15 6 (a) states: After a tackle, all other players must be on their feet when they play the ball. …….

Law 15.6 (b) reads: After a tackle any player on their feet may attempt to gain possession by taking the ball from the ball carriers possession.

Law 15 5 (e) states that: If opposition players who are on their feet, the tackled player must release the ball.

This indicates that after a tackle a player on his feet may play the ball.

Law 16 1 (b) states: How can a ruck form? Players are on their feet. At least one player must be in physical contact with an opponent. The ball is on the ground.

Law 16.1 refers to a player from each side in physical contact over the ball and implies that the ball is not in the possession of any player.

Providing a player from either side on their feet after a tackle comply with all aspects of Law 15 and have the ball in their hands prior to contact with an opposition player on his feet those players may continue with possession of the ball even if a player from the opposition makes contact with those players in possession of the ball.

Any other players joining the two players contesting the ball must not handle the ball in accordance with Law 16.4 (b). If the ball is not in possession of any player after a tackle and a ruck is formed players may not use their hands in accordance with Law 16.4 (b).

The Ruling is effective from 23 May for the start of matches in the June window and after the close of any domestic or cross border competitions