Always a Wasp

Behind the scenes with a rugby citing commissioner

Telegraph Sport is given exclusive access to the inner workings of the Premiership?s disciplinary processes
Charles Richardson, Rugby Reporter 8 April 2024 ? 7:00am


Standing on the concourse of a Premiership rugby ground on match day, awaiting the arrival of the citing commissioner ? and he is late. Is that an offence worthy of a red card?

Given that the commissioner in question has been hospitable enough to grant Telegraph Sport exclusive access to the inner workings of the Premiership?s disciplinary processes, probably not. Besides, it is the commissioner himself who decides.

With kick-off just over an hour away, I am here to take a look behind the curtain at the role of citing commissioners ? about the only subsection of rugby?s off-field, match-day officials who have not come in for scrutiny over the past fortnight.

These are 22 officials, all part-time employees of the Rugby Football Union, scattered around the country, who are paid to watch Premiership, Championship and Premiership Women?s Rugby matches every weekend and highlight anything untoward in a post-match report. Some are ex-players, some come in from other unions ? there is a Hungarian officer currently ? and some carry out duties in European competitions, too, but all are united by a keen eye for foul play.

?After my playing days, if I had a pound for every time someone said ?poacher turned gamekeeper?,? today?s commissioner, having arrived, tells Telegraph Sport. ?There are a few ex-players. I absolutely love it. It keeps me involved in the top end of the game. I end up bumping into loads of mates.?

Before the pleasantries among friends, however, business must commence. First stop, the television truck, where the commissioner drops off a USB stick to one of the broadcaster?s technicians. It is this stick and a soon-to-be-created WhatsApp group around which the entire process revolves. During today?s match, the citing commissioner will spectate alongside the official timekeeper in the press gantry, and when he spots an incident that requires further attention, he will note the time in the match and where on the pitch the incident took place, and ask the broadcaster?s technician to save all the angles as clips on his USB stick. Then, from the comfort of his own home, the commissioner will be able to come to a considered judgement on whether to cite a player.

As kick-off approaches, it is time to meet and greet the respective team managers in the tunnel. A less experienced commissioner might have to introduce himself, but not this particular officer, who is seemingly known by all and sundry. ?Hopefully, they genuinely like me!? the officer says, when I ask if they are just being convivial because of his commissioner status. ?If I cite someone, maybe not.?

The commissioner reminds the two team managers that they can flag any issues to him after the match. The deadline for referrals from clubs is 12 hours, with the commissioner given a further 12 to cite. For a snapshot into how the duties of a commissioner have eased, this particular officer has cited just one player in the past two years; the last citing in the Premiership for an incident missed by the on-field officials came nearly a year ago (an Ellis Genge tackle on Tom Curry in April 2023).

?Howlers don?t happen very often,? the commissioner says. ?There are so many different levels now with the referees, the assistants and the TMO. We?re more of a safety net, to be honest. The only other time is if the on-field officials decide that something is a yellow card and we look at it and think, ?Hmm, it?s a bit worse than that. It needs upgrading?. If it?s straight red, we don?t get involved, that gets automatically dealt with. All we have to do is sort the clips out to send to David [Barnes, RFU head of discipline] because they?ll have to write up a report. We only get involved if it?s a penalty or a yellow that deserves a red.

?It used to be gouging, punching; you name it, it went on. Now, it?s high tackles, tip tackles. There are too many cameras to get away with anything else.

?I?ve been a citing commissioner for 10 years. Beforehand, I was on the judicial panel. The citing officers used to send the naughty boys to us and then I was asked if I?d like to become a citing officer. I?d just packed up playing so I jumped at the chance.?

With the pre-match preparation complete, we ascend to the press gantry. A packet of nuts and a bag of mint humbugs suffice for dinner and with the match in full swing handbags erupt on the field. The commissioner?s attention is caught and the binoculars are raised. ?No one is going to throw a punch,? he says, almost egging the players on. ?They know damn well they?re going to get into trouble!?

At the end of the first half, the commissioner scribbles ?NFP? into his notebook: No foul play. Had there been any, he explains, he would have waited until half-time to put it into the WhatsApp group. After all, his undiluted focus needs to be on the match while it is taking place.

?We have something called the ?pink card test?,? he says. ?We are on the lookout for anything that?s a yellow card going up to a red. That?s the easiest way to describe it.

?I write down every foul play incident. You wouldn?t cite a deliberate knock-on or a collapsed maul but they are foul play. It?s about causing injury ? which we do look at ? and we look at the level of danger. A deliberate knock-on is not dangerous; collapsing a maul could be, but invariably isn?t.

?High tackles and the other thing which has been creeping in, people attacking the lower limb. Dissent... if a player tells a referee to ?f--- off? then you?d hope that it was dealt with there and then but if it wasn?t then it would come under my remit.?

This is not a chummy, jobs-for-the-boys affair, either. Barnes told Telegraph Sport that accountability was one of the principal reasons for paying their citing officers, although having officers delisted is ?very rare?.

?Often, it is not always about the decision, but more offering a rational explanation of it,? the former Bath prop says. ?Most are pretty good and do exactly what we ask.

?And that works both ways. The citing commissioners like going to games so we have kept their roles in-person, whereas World Rugby, for internationals, have citing officers working completely remotely.?

The commissioner adds: ?There is accountability ? 100 per cent. If you?re not doing your job properly and you don?t pick stuff up then you either don?t get given games, or you get dropped down a level to the Championship or women?s matches.

?If there?s something a bit controversial where you?re not sure, we discuss it in a WhatsApp group. We?re probably about 90 per cent always singing from the same songsheet.?

The songsheet for this match, just as it did at half-time, sings ?NFP?. All that remains is to check in with the two team managers ? who, on this occasion, have nothing to add ? before swinging past the broadcast cabin to collect that precious USB and heading off into the night, with 24 hours to file a post-match report which will be quite bare ? as ever.

3 hopefully but still think 1 is most likely.  The RFU have no ability in anything.

Tried to cut and paste but failed -

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/article-13260249/Leicester-Tigers-fined-Premiership-Rugby-salary-cap-breach.html

Read the bits towards the end. This penalty is for a year they were previously found wanting!!

RugbyInsideLine
@RugbyInsideLine
🐯 BREAKING: Leicester Tigers breached the salary cap by ?47,136.91 in 2019/20.

They will be fined ?1 for every ?1 overspend

Unless there is strong political pressure (from the PM), HMRC simply ignore any requests and pleas. You owe it. It is due. Pay or we will see you in Court. Soon. They do not care for the societal consequences.

Which as a tax payer I am in full agreement with.

Premiership Rugby clubs post losses of almost ?25m for 2022-23 season

Saracens posted biggest losses of over ?5 million, while Newcastle Falcons have not yet made their finances for 2022-23 period public
Ben Coles, Rugby Reporter 29 March 2024 ? 1:17pm


Nine of 10 Gallagher Premiership clubs have posted financial losses which total almost ?25 million for the 2022-23 season.

Newcastle Falcons have yet to publicly post their results for the last financial year but of the data available, nine clubs cumulatively made a loss of around ?23.5 million.

Saracens posted the biggest loss at ?5,295,310, with the club?s turnover of ?23,206,354 falling well short of their ?28,559,147 budget.

Bristol Bears, backed by the billionaire Steve Lansdown, finished with a total loss of ?4,554,814. Harlequins posted the highest turnover, ?26,813,85, but had the largest budget at ?30,392,791, resulting in a loss of ?3,648.893.

Gloucester produced the best results due to having a budget of ?18,291,675, which was marginally higher than the club?s turnover of ?18,162,660, making an eventual loss of ?393,079. Two other clubs produced losses which were below the half a million figure, with Sale making a ?439,294 loss and Northampton a ?467,836 loss.

Sale notably had the lowest turnover, ?11,735,339, but also the lowest budget of ?16,496,292. They were also one of only two clubs, along with fellow Premiership finalists Saracens, to produce a positive net financing costs figure of ?258,953.

The results also disclose the number of people employed by each club, with Exeter recording the highest figure of 354 of which 156 were coaches and players. Bristol employed the fewest number of people (155) and number of players and staff (87).

Exeter?s financial results, with a loss of ?3,994,469, included the hotel built on site at Sandy Park, which made a loss of ?2m over the course of the financial year. The hotel has since been sold off, with Exeter?s chairman and chief executive, Tony Rowe, buying an undisclosed stake in the Sandy Park Hotel back in December 2022 to help pay off the club?s Covid-19 loans.

Exeter said at the time: ?The fee paid for the shares by Mr Rowe not only provides an injection of capital to keep cashflow going, but will also help service substantial debts accrued by Exeter Rugby Club due to the impact of the Covid pandemic in 2020. Directors will use ?their best endeavours? to retain ?at least? 26 per cent shareholding in the hotel company.?

Premiership Rugby has been contacted for comment.
Analysis: Rugby still feeling Covid after effects

Perhaps the main factor to consider when analysing the latest accounts for the nine Premiership clubs, with Newcastle still to come, is that teams across the league are still feeling the financial effects of the pandemic, hit hard by that loss of matchday revenue.

Seeing that amount of red on a spreadsheet naturally leads to concern but among the numbers there are some positives, such as Northampton posting a record turnover of nearly ?22 million, up by a million on the previous year. Even a club in as strong a position as Northampton is still going to be confronted with costs, with their cash balance dropping due to the construction of the club?s new High Performance Centre.

The Premiership is still reeling from the loss of Worcester Warriors, Wasps and London Irish during the previous season and, predominantly, clubs appear to be cautious. Take Sale?s budget, around ?16.5 million, being almost half of that of Harlequins (?30.4 million).

The same long-term concerns remain. Certain clubs relying on the large investment of owners with deep pockets, a TV deal which lags far behind the money paid for the rights to the Top 14 in France, the fact that clubs with excellent attendance figures and large capacities ? Leicester, Northampton, Gloucester ? are occasionally falling short of making a profit. Not forgetting that the salary cap ceiling is set to rise next season from ?5 million to ?6.4 million ? the timing of which seems highly questionable ? or how the Covid-19 loans from the government will be repaid.

These are all existing issues which require long-term solutions but right now, the aim across the Premiership appears to be to create stability.

At the same time, sources close to the league are optimistic about an increase in supporter numbers this season at matches, with gate numbers continuing to climb and up by around five per cent on the previous season. The more people back in grounds, the more revenue. Right now, every extra pound feels important.

This update from championship clubs chairman Simon Halliday has appeared in today's media.
It doesn't say much but it is clear that RFU CEO Bill Sweeney's franchise idea is dead in the water and the latest deadline of the end of this month is going to be missed.
Hopefully the championship clubs will remain united and we will get a well structured, properly funded, 2nd tier that the game needs and the clubs deserve.

The Championship Clubs Committee met today to hear an update from their Executive on progress made in discussions about the future of Tier 2 of English rugby.

While there was at one point in the recent history of this crucial process a deadline of March 31st for the selection of clubs for a second tier, that deadline was scrapped some time ago and there are currently a series of important and intensive discussions going on around the league, which will be launched for the 2025/26 season.

Those discussions between the CCC, the RFU and, where relevant, Premiership Rugby Ltd, cover all the basic points needed to establish a new Tier 2 for the good of the English game and for the security and planning necessary to the current Championship clubs.

There is no deadline for these discussions, although clearly it is important that agreement is reached as quickly as possible so that planning for both the new Tier 2 league and for the 2024/25 season can begin.

Solid progress has been made on the various issues being discussed. The parties involved believe that an agreement is within reach, although some very important topics still need to be brought to a satisfactory conclusion for all the parties.

These are vital discussions and are taking place in an intensive, progressive and co-operative atmosphere.

No doubt, when outstanding issues are resolved, a public statement will be made, but in the meantime, please be assured that the future of Championship clubs and the interests of those who aspire to join the second tier of our game are being given the priority they deserve by all of us involved.

We now go to watch Ealing, and the black clouds of  crumb that constantly rise from the pitch really make you wonder how healthy they can be for the players.

Not!