Agree with the above. Especially that the game has the air of complexity that makes it hard to follow and worse than that - the inconsistency of Law application and indeed failure to apply Laws makes it harder to follow and indeed play.
Whilst Mitre 10 rugby is a little below SR, SR players are turning out for their local sides - and it's the showground for SR selection. I was quite taken over covid by the games shown on satellite from NZ, and how the game was played and officiated. It's been my benchmark for officiating and it was especially good around applying offside, breakdown/ruck Laws and scrum penalties (playing the ball if available)
The games were much easier to follow than Prem games as the game was fast and based upon use of space more than use of running into people. Refs often "coached" the tackle calling tackle, release, roll, ruck such that players were facilitated in making decisions to jackal. And the increased pace of the games meant power wasn't decisive.
Looking at the Euro final on Sat, Barnes basically didn't apply breakdown Laws either consistently or immediately. He reffed as if it was permitted to use hands in rucks if you are on your feet. It's worth a read of Law 15 to show what he was failing to do. Not just Saturday - but too many NH games have basically what I'd call assaults when "clearing out", which really don't fall within the Laws and offside seemed something that the assistant refs were not involved in ffs...
Scrum time is a mess. As an old prop I struggle with the officiating and the time wasting involved. It's boring and fails to contribute. This is an area that needs another think as the scrum as a penalty generator and not an unequal contest for possession means the game can be so easily biased by the officiating.
But rugby needs to firstly actually apply the Laws and consistently. World Rugby has tried, especially around the breakdown - but reading their 2020 piece on the breakdown would suggest Barnes hadn't read it. AND he was on the working group .....
https://www.world.rugby/news/568557