Different Week, same old story

First topic message reminder :

For the second week in a row, the All Blacks were robbed by an appalling decision by a local TMO.

After the shocking debacle in Port Elizabeth a week ago, toothless Paddy O'Brien's IRB refereeing so-called Elite panel have come in for more criticism after a shambles in the Tri-nations decider between New Zealand and Australia.

This time the villain was parochial Australian Matt Goddard. Faced with with video evidence clearly indicating a 22 meter restart after excellent work by All Black Veteran Muliaina, the local notorious Australian indicated to controversial Englishman Wayne Barnes that he believed a 5 meter scrum to his home team Australia was warranted.

With 3 key backrowers temporarily injured, Australia worked a move close to the scrum and scored what turned out to be the games clinching try.

Barnes, who himself this time took a more active role than usual in the All Blacks down fall after impeding Adam Thompson as he attempt to put a tackle of Samo, creating an unimpeded run to the try line for the Australia 8, was this time additionally rather let down by his assistants. Firstly Goddard, and secondly by another South African who was fooled by some Hollywood theatrics by Adam Ashley-Cooper who ran into the back of Kevin Mealamu and then threw himself to the ground in the style more befitting the closing act of Hamlet. This was enough for the South African to disrupt All Black momentum and award a penalty shot to Cooper.

IRB head referee Paddy O'Brien has presided over an era of controversy as chief referee. Many experts have levelled blame for the fall of the games professional adjudication into chaos as he has failing to address the inadequate level of the so-called top level referees. O'Brien was responsible for appointing inexperienced Wayne Barnes to referee the All Blacks when the were thrown out of the 2007 world cup in one of the worst refereeing displays in the professional era where he failed to penalise France for any one of 27 indiscretions in the last 60 minutes and missed a blatantly forward pass.

O'Brien was also responsible for the debacle which saw the two hemispheres play under different rules for 2 years throwing the global game into chaos.



Unsurprisingly Cooper missed the kick, but the controversial Australian already looks set to miss the world cup after being cited for a cynical off the ball knee to the head of All Black legend Richie McCaw. Many industry pundits have suggested that despite the obvious cynicism that Cooper may escape sanction if O'brien continues his trend of inadequate accountability in the global game.

"Unless Paddy gets off his chuff and does something about the state of the game, this kind of unacceptable travesty will continue to roll off the international rugby conveyor belt." our correspondent said.

On the other side of the ledger, AAC deliberately ran into KM and then threw himself to the ground like a Shakespearian hack acting out the closing sequence of Hamlet, and milking a penalty from the same touch judge who missed the Cooper knee 2 meters in front of him.

Barnes took the linesman's word for it, having "failed to see" either incident

So precious you are. Here's someone else's take on the game. From the SMH via the Dominion Post (an NZ paper).
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-news/a-word-on-the-all-blacks-play-cheats-20110831-1jl9l.html

"Go back to the first South Africa game just before Wyatt Crockett scored in the corner. It is hard to believe that Richie McCaw could be four yards offside and get away with it, but there he is holding back the South African lock."

I remember that, I was commenting on that during the game, it wasn't just McCaw being blatantly offside, nonu took another defender out when the ball went left.

Later in that same game McCaw did his latest trick, he was running ala American Fooball style, running interference accros the pitch sothat noone could get to the ball carrier.

My God.
Whats with this post?
U children fighting in the sandpit again?
When ref blows whistle afta 80mins its
time to move on lads.
Was an interesting game.
Has balance of power moved across the Tasman?
Time will tell.
But the over-analysis....
And cheap point scoring...
Just a tad tedious

Jello Biafra wrote:

On the other side of the ledger, AAC deliberately ran into KM and then threw himself to the ground like a Shakespearian hack acting out the closing sequence of Hamlet, and milking a penalty from the same touch judge who missed the Cooper knee 2 meters in front of him.

Barnes took the linesman's word for it, having "failed to see" either incident

So precious you are. Here's someone else's take on the game. From the SMH via the Dominion Post (an NZ paper).
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-news/a-word-on-the-all-blacks-play-cheats-20110831-1jl9l.html

That is an instructive article and it does I believe encapsulate what a lot of non NZ fans believe. Not from an OZ scribe either. When it is Bob Dwyer prepared to call it then he attracts all the ridicule in the world across the ditch - Bob is a bit of a nutcase, but he is not alone with his views. Tripping, holding players down, pulling players back, getting in the way at the breakdown, interfering with defense, offside at the ruck - never behind players feet, never rolling away at the tackle - it is a feature of the current vintage of the ABs all of it is in the background and often missed - have been watching it develop over the past few years. Do other teams do it ? Of course - to a degree, but it has become a feature of the forwards in this AB side IMO far more so than other sides. They are the No 1 ranked side, but to see how they think they need to go about their business to maintain that - well. It is part of the game and we live with it like everything else. What is galling though is the shrill, apoplectic protestations from them if A decision happens to go against them - and the pages and pages of endless whining about it.

biltongbek wrote:"Go back to the first South Africa game just before Wyatt Crockett scored in the corner. It is hard to believe that Richie McCaw could be four yards offside and get away with it, but there he is holding back the South African lock."

I remember that, I was commenting on that during the game, it wasn't just McCaw being blatantly offside, nonu took another defender out when the ball went left.

Later in that same game McCaw did his latest trick, he was running ala American Fooball style, running interference accros the pitch sothat noone could get to the ball carrier.

Biltong. How unlike you. If you're go to go down this route, then South Africa's lone try in the first SA-NZ game should have been ruled out. They took the ball into a maul a few meters out from the line. The ball was then dropped, and picked up by the player at the back of the maul. You can't do that since it puts all of the guys he's bound to immediately off-side.

Ghost I have no problem with it. I am merely stating what I saw, you know I don't whinge.

It is merely an observation.

Looks like the SA v NZ match should have been a 0-0 draw according to you two

As I am merely observing that the TMO decisions were both incorrect.

Keep that humour Bilton - it all gets a bit lost on here with the passion for our teams - Passionality equates to Irrationality but it's all good fun as the GG would say

True, but you take it to a whole other level,

I agree with you wholeheartedly that we should not have mistakes by referees, TMO's or any officials.

But to suggest there is gross negligence and incompetence with just a little hint of conspiracy is nt fair on any of them.

They have a difficult enough job as it is, and mistakes can only be learnt from.

RubyGuby wrote:Keep that humour Bilton - it all gets a bit lost on here with the passion for our teams - Passionality equates to Irrationality but it's all good fun as the GG would say

Yeah, we need not take ourselves so esriously all the time, it is only a game..................



WHAT!

Only a game?

And GG while your at it I was at the '78 game in Cardiff when that english ref gave your boys a penalty and with the last kick of the game you won 12-13 - But like the Murphys I'm not bitter - I was for about 23 years but you get over it quite easily in the end.

Haden was on tv the other night over that one.
Said i dont regret the score. So why would i regret the incident.
Isnt it funny how the actual perpitrator of the penalty- geoff wheel, has come out of this without criticism or comment.
Wheel actually lost that test by doing something haden in his ridiculous effort was also trying to do. Gain an unfair advantage by cheatimg.
Wheels attempt to lift of the ab shoulder was illegal and was penalised accordingly.
Hadens act was dumb.. But not illegal.
Anyone is allowed to dive from a lineout.
Happens all time in football.
Hadens no saint. But WHEEL lost that test.
Yet no one seems to comment or want to attribute blame to the actual source of the loss.
Funny that.

"Hadens no saint. But WHEEL lost that test."

They're still in denial - Free your soul man free your soul - I guess JPR was also kissing one of your lads boots during another game on the tour as well

The penalty wasn't given for Haden diving out of the line out.

This is a Welsh myth perpetuated through the parochial culture of injustice to explain defeat.

TheGreyGhost wrote:The penalty wasn't given for Haden diving out of the line out.

This is a Welsh myth perpetuated through the parochial culture of injustice to explain defeat.

Have you seen your posts following your defeat to SA recently you take "parochial culture of injustice" to an astronomical level

Can we keep on topic please. We're talking about the Andy Haden incident.

I was raising the point that clearly the penalty was not given because of Haden's dive (which he has subsequently revealed was a desperate attempt to prevent a butterfly from being injured - it was about to fly into the AB line out - heart of gold that man).