The French are through to their third RWC final. The Welsh are through to the play-off match for third and fourth; the match that no-one wants to play. The first half of an exact replica of the 1987 finals is complete.
The Welsh are crying "We were robbed". Perhaps they were, and perhaps they weren't. In this morning's Herald, Andrew Alderson evaluates Alain Rolland's red card call on Sam Warburton.
When Alain Rolland reached into his pocket in the 18th minute to bring out the red card for Welsh captain Sam Warburton, he was operating to the letter of the IRB's laws, but in doing so ruined a Rugby World Cup semifinal.
A game that promised so much turned into a 15 vs 14 battle of attrition, something a booing crowd struggled to accept or appreciate.
As for Warburton, his campaign is likely to be over, with the mandatory appearance in front of the judiciary - a devastating lesson for one of the players of the tournament. He was then submitted to the indignity of a camera thrust in his face for several minutes so the watching world could feel it too. A gut-wrenching moment; he did well to handle it with composure.
Yes, it was a foolish tackle. Yes, wing Vincent Clerc was upended. Yes, the lawbook says there is to be zero-tolerance under a memorandum last year. The memorandum told referees to enforce the law on tip tackles severely, yet confusingly also asked them to make an objective assessment of the overall circumstances of the tackle.
Rolland faced a decision based between three parameters under IRB law.
1. The player is lifted and then forced or "speared" into the ground. A red card should be issued.
2. The lifted player is dropped to the ground from a height with no regard to the player's safety. A red card should be issued.
3. The players is lifted with their head below horizontal and tackled to the ground. At a minimum a yellow card should be issued, with an ejection a possible result depending on the circumstances of the tackle.
So Warburton was always going to get at least a yellow card. However, the laws made it tough for his survival and encouraged Rolland to hunt for red. They say referees should not make their decisions based on what they consider was the intention of the offending player. Instead it should be based on an objective assessment.
Therefore Rolland can't be blamed fully. The IRB laws say there is no room for discretion; no room to question intent. But all for what? Clerc got up fine yet the game disintegrated. Warburton had already started to pull out of the tackle as Clerc was travelling towards the ground. It was not a soft landing but one where Warburton looked to mitigate his actions.
Our first instinct when we saw the tackle was to mutter an oath. On the Sky commentary, Justin Marshall showed that he knew the law; he said something along the lines of "He's in trouble; this'll be a red" and he was right. Sam Warburton lifted and inverted Vincent Clerc, then let him go. Clerc fell heavily, on the back of his head and neck. Rolland had such a perfect view that he was able to make an instant decision, without reference to his assistants. In law, he made the only decision available to him under clause 2 above.
The law may be an ass, but in the absence of any amendment, it is the law, and referees have an obligation to rule as instructed. Wales was down to 14, and its inspirational captain was on the sideline.
France should have won easily. That they didn't is testimony to just what an average team they are in 2011, yet next Sunday night they will compete in the RWC final.
Wales fought bravely, but they will lament the lack of an accurate goalkicker. Seventeen points went begging through three missed penalties, two missed dropped goals and a missed conversion after Mike Phillips scored the only try in a lacklustre match. Even with just 14 men for 3/4 of the contest, Wales did enough to win, but came up one point, and one width of the upright short.
But they shouldn't blame Alain Rolland. In the professional world which is rugby in this era, he was just doing his job, according to Hoyle; or O'Brien.
18 comments:
Yes, sack O'Brien too. A yellow was the right decision, it was a normal driving tackle that went pear-shaped as Clerc twisted and Warburton tried to pull out.
This will go down as the tournament spoilt by the IRB and the referees. Len Brown will be happy...
O'Brien apparently reckons that no RWC match has ever turned on a referee's performance...well that's two in as many weeks.
should have been yellow.
I thought the French 6 & 7 were fantastic and their line-out killed the Welsh one somehow.
shame about the game (semi and finals tend to be boring) and the result. Wales were close to my tram of the tournament with the French the worst
What crap. The ref had a choice and he chose to wreck the game (which was attended by 60000 people each paying hundreds for the privilege). Making excuses for his lack of judgment just encourages poor performance. I thought you were supposed to be strong on personal responsibility?
The Welsh/All Black final evaporated at the moment Rolland's fingers closed around that red card. We now loathe the French for their stupid luck. We've lost the pleasure of what would have been a marvelous game in which Wales would have showcased its impressive energy, youth and fitness. A classic 'pure rugby nations' final clash would have had the country enthralled. Though France played like somnambulists, they did defend staunchly at the last and they didn't make foolish mistakes. The sending off of Warburton was a tragedy, in rugby terms, for all. Had I been ref, he'd have done his 10 minutes, spent it thinking how friggin stupid his tackle was, then taken the field again for what should have been a marvelous game.
@ Anon (and Robert) - yes; the ref had a choice; to apply the law as directed, or to contract outside the law, in which case his international refereeing career would be over.
Alain Rolland isn't to blame for the law being an ass; the IRB and its manager of referees are far more culpable.
The referee needs to look at the incident, context and outcome in order to come to a balanced interpretation of rules and guidelines. You trying to excuse his culpability just encourages poor decision-making. This sort of thing tarnishes the whole tournament.
I fail to see how either point 1 or 2 are the case here. A decent ref, with a feel for the game and the circumstances would have gone for yellow.
Whatever happened to the principle that you knew a ref's performance was good, if you couldn't remember who the ref was?
I'm agreeing with Robert and Stuart Barnes at the same time...must be time to start drinking again!
I'm sticking to my guns. I really feel for the Welsh because I so wanted them to win. But Rolland had no alternative under the laws and guidelines he is required to uphold.
The IRB has made a rod for its own back, and that is where the criticism should be directed. Paddy O'Brien has also instructed referees not to decide games with penalties in the dying minutes, except for instances of foul or dangerous play. One could argue that in doing so, he too is contracting outside the laws.
But consider this analogy; The Urewera 13 were discharged by the Court of Appeal because evidence against them was obtained illegally. The government moved to close a loophole in the law, and was shouted down by the likes of Robert. And yet that is exactly what Robert is asking Alain Rolland to have done last night; to go outside the law, and make up his own one to fit the circumstances. As a former referee, I know only too well that it doesn't work like that.
The wrong team won last night IMHO. But Wales could, and probably should have won the match, even with 14 against 15.
The red card didn't take a victory away from Wales. Their failure to pot a few goals did. Nothing wrong with the ref's decision to boot out Warburton!
Cadwallader
That's rubbish. If Rolland had made the right call none of the criticism of the IRB would be happening and they would be happy. The guy's got free will to interpret the rules and guidelines as he sees fit taking into account the individual circumstances of any incident. He chose to send Warburton off for a non-capital offence, thus he's responsible and culpable for the outcome (a wrecked game and the wrong winner). His career should be over.
You're suggesting he was just following orders. That lamo defence didn't work at Nuremburg now did it?
Of course he had an alternative, I look at those three laws and it's clear that yellow is the appropriate sanction.
I think the decision was correct (albeit not best for the game but referees aren't supposed to base decisions like this on that).
That the tackled player wasn't injured doesn't come into it. I know someone who landed on his head after a tackle and was paralysed, and this tackled resulted in head first for the deck.
Right decision and I would have handed him a red for what appeared to be a hand in the face as Clerc lay on the ground
But then I am biased, prefer the French over the Welsh anytime, what have Wales given us compared to the Frence
Wine and fromage against leeks, no contest
Wales...they didn't give us nuclear testing in the Pacific..or a terrorist bomb attack in one of our harbours....
Tom Jones and I'll take caerphilly over anything the French call cheese...
The Welsh lost the semi-final.
The French didn't win it.
They missed a number of kicks that should have been made.
The pity is that the tournament has been brilliant. Tthe rugby however has not been of the same quality.
bugger.
Go the ABs
The correct call was the red card the sensible call was yellow.
I picked up 8 Jimungo points and now think that France have just become a big danger because they just did enough to win and they won't be that cautious next week. They will have nothing to lose and that is when they are at their most dangerous.
JS - we stayed at the Welcome Inn at Caerphilly in September 2009.
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