The Refs - Have a Whinge and Solve Their Many Problems

[mrslong]

We should have a refs thread.
I would like to see 1 ref, and he (or she!) makes the decisions. I can live with an incorrect call in the run of play. Humans make mistakes, we move on and get over it. I can NOT handle the video refs with all the time in the world and all the replays getting it wrong, so lets minimise their involvement.

In the same breath: I also want the refs to ref the F##KING RULES. I want to see a proper play the ball on the mark, over the mark or don't play the ball with your foot it's a penalty. Hand on the ball? Penalty. Offside? Penalty. Offside when returning the ball for the 20m tap? You better believe it - PENALTY GDAMMMMM IT. These guys train purely to play footy, you watch them start playing the ball with their foot, being onside, not giving away multiple penalties if they realise the rules are going to be enforced.

It won't ruin the game, it will improve it. So, in summary: Let the onfield ref ref the rules. The video ref can see if a try has been scored (and I don't mean go back and see the 50 ball movements in the lead up to the try, just whether it gets planted over the g-damn line) and we will have a great product.

 

[Morkel]

I agree with him. The officials do a good job. People seem to forget that these guys come from the same walk of life as the players and the fans. They are not going to be perfect, the same way that the players aren't and god knows that many League fans are total screw ups. RL will never move forward until this culture of ref bashing subsides. Yes, they can be frustrating at times especially with the technology but they are only human, just like the rest of us. The standard of officiating has improved vastly in the past quarter century.

I agree that the refs are doing their best at their job. But my main issue is with how the game is refereed, not necessarily how individual refs perform. I don't think there are many people left that truly believe that indiscretions are treated purely on merit. Penalties, and other calls, are always dealt with in response to the state of the match.

* If a team is behind on the scoreboard, they'll be more likely to be rewarded a catch-up penalty.
* If the penalty count is lopsided, the cleaner team will be penalised in order to even up the count.
* Having a situation of 12 vs 13 men would make the contest extremely uneven, so players will not be sent off or sent to the bin unless they are clearly farcical (blatant professional fouls) or if the team that is behind on the scoreboard will benefit.

Gould was having a stink about the refs, specifically during the Sharks game, how the Sharks have been "offside all year", and how Fifita never plays the ball correctly, and yet they don't get penalised for it. Why? Because "closest competition ever". Penalties aren't being used to punish foul play anymore, they are simply being used strategically to keep matches tight.

That has to come from above. I'm not even talking Archer - he's in charge of the refs, but he's not in charge of the direction or commercial appeal of the game. I'm talking Greenturd, who once again, has escaped being mentioned in any of this talk.

 

[BroncsFan]

I agree that the refs are doing their best at their job. But my main issue is with how the game is refereed, not necessarily how individual refs perform. I don't think there are many people left that truly believe that indiscretions are treated purely on merit. Penalties, and other calls, are always dealt with in response to the state of the match.

* If a team is behind on the scoreboard, they'll be more likely to be rewarded a catch-up penalty.
* If the penalty count is lopsided, the cleaner team will be penalised in order to even up the count.
* Having a situation of 12 vs 13 men would make the contest extremely uneven, so players will not be sent off or sent to the bin unless they are clearly farcical (blatant professional fouls) or if the team that is behind on the scoreboard will benefit.

Gould was having a stink about the refs, specifically during the Sharks game, how the Sharks have been "offside all year", and how Fifita never plays the ball correctly, and yet they don't get penalised for it. Why? Because "closest competition ever". Penalties aren't being used to punish foul play anymore, they are simply being used strategically to keep matches tight.

That has to come from above. I'm not even talking Archer - he's in charge of the refs, but he's not in charge of the direction or commercial appeal of the game. I'm talking Greenturd, who once again, has escaped being mentioned in any of this talk.

100% agree with all of this

 

[CaptainHook]

* If a team is behind on the scoreboard, they'll be more likely to be rewarded a catch-up penalty.
* If the penalty count is lopsided, the cleaner team will be penalised in order to even up the count.
* Having a situation of 12 vs 13 men would make the contest extremely uneven, so players will not be sent off or sent to the bin unless they are clearly farcical (blatant professional fouls) or if the team that is behind on the scoreboard will benefit.

Gould was having a stink about the refs, specifically during the Sharks game, how the Sharks have been "offside all year", and how Fifita never plays the ball correctly, and yet they don't get penalised for it. Why? Because "closest competition ever". Penalties aren't being used to punish foul play anymore, they are simply being used strategically to keep matches tight.

That has to come from above. I'm not even talking Archer - he's in charge of the refs, but he's not in charge of the direction or commercial appeal of the game. I'm talking Greenturd, who once again, has escaped being mentioned in any of this talk.

Great post @Morkel - love the above comments

Has it ever been this bad for NRL referees? They've copped crticisim before - but you have Phil Gould openly stating on television that refs try to keep penalites at a certain number. Fox Sports panellists are talking about the phenomenon of second half penalty square ups.

That's never happened before. It's usually been driven by disgruntled fans.

Mascord, Kent and Warren Smith have delivered superb articles on the standard of refereeing this week. Smith, in particular, nailed it with this comment:

Should you suggest to the game’s administrators that actually applying the rules as they’re written might be worth exploring, they’ll instantly tell you that it would make the game unwatchable, that interest would drop off quickly and that the game as a highly marketable entertainment vehicle would soon be relegated to a second tier sporting property.

The whole article is worth a read here: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/op...b/news-story/97cea0df8e3695f6d4a4a8e2a2a79628

The NRL have a problem - do they want to be a sport or do they want to be entertainment? They can't be sports-entertainment because then they become the WWE.

If they want to be a legitimate sport then the game needs to be refereed that way - even if it results in a less flashy 'product.' Personally, I find the notion of enforcing rules will lead to a boring game stupid. Rugby League, played in good spirit, and refereed properly is highly commercial I would've thought.

If they want to be entertainment - something that appeals to people with disposable income - that's fine. Keep training your refs to manage games - but they'll alienate die hard RL fans as the years go and they'll be competing with other real sports who are already lapping them with crowd numbers, ratings, expansion, junior growth as well as other entertainment outlet giants like Netflix etc.

 

[JayPee]

It is true. The more they ref directly to the rules the more people that will gets the shits. They can never win. The only reason it is assumed that the referees make more mistakes and blunders these days is because back 20 30 40 years ago the level of scrutiny was not what it is today. Can guarantee if you go watch through games from this period there is shit tonnes more errors.

If they refereed to the rules there would be 40 penalties a game and then you would get coaches and fans coming out saying how bad it is. League is run by coaches. We need somebody to come in and tell these blokes to referee what they see and to the rules and when you get all the backlash crying foul about it we need a strong leader to say this is how it is. Don't break the rules and you won't be punished. Might be a period of a couple of months where the look is terrible but coaches/players will soon learn that they have to curb what they are doing otherwise they risk being penalised out of a game. Short term pain for long term gain

 

[Foordy]

It is true. The more they ref directly to the rules the more people that will gets the shits. They can never win. The only reason it is assumed that the referees make more mistakes and blunders these days is because back 20 30 40 years ago the level of scrutiny was not what it is today. Can guarantee if you go watch through games from this period there is shit tonnes more errors.

If they refereed to the rules there would be 40 penalties a game and then you would get coaches and fans coming out saying how bad it is. League is run by coaches. We need somebody to come in and tell these blokes to referee what they see and to the rules and when you get all the backlash crying foul about it we need a strong leader to say this is how it is. Don't break the rules and you won't be punished. Might be a period of a couple of months where the look is terrible but coaches/players will soon learn that they have to curb what they are doing otherwise they risk being penalised out of a game. Short term pain for long term gain

if the NRL don't want them to ref to the rules, they should change the bloody rules

 

[JayPee]

if the NRL don't want them to ref to the rules, they should change the bloody rules

I don't think its about that necessarily. More trying to manage a game instead of just taking a stand. For as good as Harrigan was he was one of the ones to bring in that crap of trying to manage and use interpretations. Killed today's referees

 

[Foordy]

I don't think its about that necessarily. More trying to manage a game instead of just taking a stand. For as good as Harrigan was he was one of the ones to bring in that crap of trying to manage and use interpretations. Killed today's referees

well they better do something because they are turning off many fans they way it stands.

besides who gives a shit if they blow 40 penalties a game ... coaches and teams will learn bloody quick that if they infringe, they will be penalized and it could very easily cost them matches.

This whole desire to keep the penalty count even, therefore blow several square-up penalties for stuff that has been happening all game and that the refs are still allowing the other team (who is leading the count) to get away with is complete BS ... hell it is damn close to match fixing

 

[Morkel]

It is idiocy to think that teams will still be infringing as much as they are now if they get pinged for it every time. If the game is run by coaches, they'll pretty fucking soon teach their players to play within the rules, otherwise a team like the Roosters or Sharks will be losing every game by 40 points.

 

[Socnorb]

Rugby league has a working class disrespect for authority, there'll always be animosity towards refs.
I see it in myself. My u12 girls always get umpired at home by the same two umpires. One of them is fairly hard on us,especially on my little ones. I'd built this whole narrative in my head of how as a player he'd developed a hatred of wests, and now had the power to penalise them as much as he wanted. That was all fine until, while checking the club website, I noticed he actually plays for Wests u14 boys. Felt like a bit of a dick.

 

[CaptainHook]

Rugby league has a working class disrespect for authority, there'll always be animosity towards refs.
I see it in myself. My u12 girls always get umpired at home by the same two umpires. One of them is fairly hard on us,especially on my little ones. I'd built this whole narrative in my head of how as a player he'd developed a hatred of wests, and now had the power to penalise them as much as he wanted. That was all fine until, while checking the club website, I noticed he actually plays for Wests u14 boys. Felt like a bit of a dick.

The 'working class' aspect of Rugby League is a great point @Socnorb and it's been brought up here and in a couple of threads lately.

Rugby League is a working class game. It's also, by and large, run by people who were from a working class background...

As the guys over at The Roar said - that's why Cold Chisel were awesome at the 2015 GF. It's why Ricky Martin went down like a fart in an elevator. RL isn't classy. We're working class but...

...much like The Second Renaissance from The Matrix trilogy...for a time it was good...

Until Rugby League started to make money. That had never happened before. You could set yourself up for life playing football. Rugby League rates really well on TV which can generate billions of dollars. Old habits die hard though.

Rugby League needs an enemy to fight. In our beginning days we fought Rugby Union. We thought they were better than us.

We fought Super League in the nineties. Why is Rugby League at its best when its at death's door?

As Mascord pointed out - our neighborhood has been gentrified but we still act like street thugs...

Fucking hell it gets old in modern life mate... supporting Rugby League is like the mammalian part of the brain trying to suppress its reptilian core.

 

[Big Del]

Said it before ; there are 3 sets of rules .
NRL rules , SOO rules and Test Match rules . None are the same . Test match has only 1 ref !

Refs put the whistle away in SOO . Things that were a penalty on Sunday are OK on Wednesday ??

 

[Browny]

Tests are different rules- they use international rules that remove some of the NRL funnies

 

[OXY-351]

 

[Nashy]

Sack the lot of them, including the NRL administrators. Go to England. Get the administration and refs from SL. They aren't corrupted by this awful administration, and they also couldn't be further detached from the NSWRL boys club.

But really, the simple thing is. Go back to the league rule book, learn it, and blow the god damned fucking whistle.

 

[Nashy]

Oh. And stop players talking to the refs. If a non captain says a god damned thing to the ref, penalty, send them off, punch them in the face, just do something. Get them blowing correct penalties every time, none of the corrupt KPI square up bullshit, blow it when a rule is broken, once the players respect you, the fans will respect you, and we will go back to not giving a **** about the whistle men.

 

[Foordy]

And stop players talking to the refs

didn't they try that last year only for the refs to allow it to come back

 

[Nashy]

didn't they try that last year only for the refs to allow it to come back

Yep. Because they're absolutely and utterly unemployable as refs. They prove it week in week out.