Rugby's high tackle inconsistency around the world risks summer of mayhem
Cross-hemisphere Tests in July could reveal officials' divergent treatment of high tackles
By Charlie Morgan, Senior Rugby Writer 22 June 2022 • 10:39am
Rugby's high tackle inconsistency around the world risks summer of mayhem
We need to talk about high tackles and cards, not that we ever veer off the topic for too long.
Monday brought a welcome announcement from World Rugby that players’ stand-down periods following a concussive incident will be based on their individual medical history, with 12-day lay-offs necessary for those who have suffered brain injuries in the past.
Next month will also witness a number of cross-hemisphere Test matches and France also face Japan. These summer showdowns always represent fascinating culture clashes. Now, thanks to some curious decisions over high tackles recently, there is an added layer of uncertainty.
Unusual leniency in the play-offs
By and large, Premiership referees have earned a reputation for consistency and we have come to expect severe sanctions for high tackles and shoulder charges. For that reason, a lack of red cards – and the sum total of zero citings – across two physical semi-finals jarred.
In some cases, it felt as though officials were eager to avoid a sending off on such a big occasion. Jack Walker and Alex Lozowski seemed particularly fortunate to escape with yellow cards in Saracens’ win over Harlequins. The latter surged out of the defensive line in the second half and earned himself a head injury assessment after a head-on-head collision with Joe Marchant.
Undeniably, there was a lack of control. Lozowski remained upright and could not readjust when Marchant stepped back inside off his left foot. World Rugby want to eradicate these challenges to protect the safety of both carrier and tackler:
In this case, Luke Pearce initially ruled that a penalty was sufficient because the blow was a glancing one and therefore not dangerous enough for a card. Ian Tempest, the television match official (TMO), talked him up to a yellow.
Owen Farrell addressed the issue in a post-match interview and asked for empathy towards players. However, a week later, his Saracens side got lucky again. Here, following an over-thrown line-out snaffled by Leicester Tigers hooker Julián Montoya, there is a high shot from Aled Davies:
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In a game defined by long, unbroken passages due to the teams’ kicking strategies, play continues for 86 seconds before TMO Tom Foley highlights the incident to Wayne Barnes. Overseeing his 10th domestic decider, the mightily experienced referee surveys the big-screen replays.
“We’ve got head contact, so we’re on foul play because he’s upright,” says Barnes of Davies. “It’s now how hard he hits [Montoya] and with what degree [of danger].
“We’ve got a bit of a brace and a bit of a dominant tackle. Show it at real speed, then, Tom. It’s just about degree of danger, isn’t it?”
The crux is that Davies’ tackle technique is considered. Indeed, he is saved by the officials’ shared opinion that he soaks up the impact of Montoya:
“[Davies] kinds of fades back a little bit,” Barnes adds. “Ball-carrier dominant, direct head contact. It’s not starting at high degree, so we’re starting just below that with a yellow card. Anyone disagree with that? We don’t need to mitigate.”
Barnes, to his credit, was consistent. Similar terminology was used much later when Matt Scott was sent to the sin bin: “We’ve got shoulder to head, same as the first half. Not really active, absorbing the tackle but it’s direct to head.”
There was little consternation at the time and such a setback had become an accepted consequence of rugby union’s disciplinary crackdown. But then, two months ago, Karl Dickson refereed the first leg of the European Champions Cup last-16 tie between Connacht and Leinster.
During the second half, Kieran Marmion broke from the tail of a line-out. He was hauled down by Ed Byrne and Jamison Gibson-Park joined the tackle in an upright position. Leinster’s scrum-half would eventually receive a yellow card:
Dickson’s explanation was this: “It is head contact, direct to the head. It’s not a high level of danger because you are accepting the tackle and not going forward. There’s no mitigation. It’s going to be a yellow card.”
Gibson-Park was cited, but a disciplinary panel including former France centre Yannick Jauzion upheld Dickson’s decision and agreed that the “low degree of force” justified the yellow.
Was this the new precedent that saved Davies? Things have appeared even more lenient Down Under – and not just because of the 20-minute red card that has been in operation.
Super Rugby flashpoints
It is reasonably safe to say that Tom Banks would have been facing a ban had this incident occurred in the northern hemisphere:
As it happened, in the wake of Brumbies’ win over Western Force this March, SANZAAR ruled that a yellow would have been sufficient and that Angus Gardner should not have brandished red.
This weekend, as the Crusaders ousted the Blues in the Super Rugby Pacific final, this tackle from Jack Goodhue on Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was deemed to be a “play on” situation”:
Ben O’Keeffe eventually ruled that the actions of David Havili, who tackled Tuivasa-Sheck towards Goodhue, caused the head clash. “There’s nothing 13 could have done,” was heard from Nic Berry, one of the assistants.
The words “stationary” and “backwards” were used by O’Keeffe to describe Goodhue as well, suggesting that a tackler’s force has superseded head contact in its significance. Again, most European players and coaches would have expected some sort of card.
Referees are mindful of how bodies pinball on the gain-line. We saw that from the penalty issued against Alex Dombrandt by Wayne Barnes at the Twickenham Stoop in April following Calum Green’s high tackle on Joe Marler.
On Sunday, Will Skelton’s red card was reasonably clear-cut because, as referee Andrea Piardi explained, a shoulder-charge to the head was delivered after Patrick Schickerling had dropped the ball:
Over the coming weeks, referees will oversee players that are unfamiliar to them. On July 2, for instance, Frank Murphy of Ireland takes charge of Japan’s meeting with France. Dickson is the man in the middle for New Zealand’s game against France and Pearce looks after Romania against Italy.
James Doleman, a Kiwi, officiates the first game between Australia and England. Nika Amashukeli from Georgia has been appointed to South Africa’s series-opener against Wales, with Berry on Argentina v Scotland.
Teething problems are to be expected and it is worth reinforcing how difficult referees have it. The hope is that a questionable high-tackle decision does not completely overshadow a match or, worse, a series. But that would seem likely, because not everyone is on the same page.
Topic: High Tackle Inconsistency - Telegraph Article (Read 780 times)
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