TMO - Too Much Officiating
After the match between the Blue Bulls and the Sharks in Pretoria on a cold Saturday evening there has been much criticism of the extended use of the television match official to include infringements in scoring a try and .foul play.
The match in Pretoria ran for 105 minutes, much of the delay caused buy referral to the TMO. At Newlands the week before referrals to the TMO had lasted 10 minutes. This one surpassed that while at Newlands this week there were no referrals at all.
There have been calls for the experiment to be scrapped.
André Watson, South Africa’s refereeing boss has called for patience. The experiment is in its infancy. But Watson did agree that what happened in Pretoria was excessive. The experiment has teething problems but, it seems, the tooth most needed is a wisdom tooth.
Watson is reported by Morris Gilbert as saying: “What happened at Loftus Versfeld is certainly not ideal. I agree that things cannot go on like this, because then we shall have to reconsider the extended powers of the TMO.
“But we must also bear in mind that the extended powers of the TMO are only a few weeks in operation and inevitably there are growing pains. A lot of streamlining needs to be done, but there is nothing wrong with the principle because it will lead to better decisions.
In Pretoria there were eight referrals by the referee to the TMO, as follows:
1. foul play. It took 4 minutes 18 seconds to find nothing wrong.
2. Legality of try: It took 2 minutes 10 seconds to find no illegality.
3. Grounding in in-goal: It took 1 minute 38 seconds to decide on a five-metre scrum.
4. Possible try: It took 1 minute 21 seconds to find that Danie Rossouw was short.
5. Legality of a try: It took 1 minute 11 seconds to find Danie Rossouw penalisable. (A decision we shall debate.)
6. Possible try: It took 1 minute 19 seconds to find that Albert van den Berg had scored a try.
7. Possible try and possible foul play: It took 5 minutes 51 seconds to decide no try, but a penalty.
8. Legality of a try: It took 1 minute 44 seconds to decide that François Hougaard had scored a try.
In total referrals took 19 minutes 32 seconds.
Of those incidents, 1, 2, 5, 7 and 8 fall under the new extended powers – 15 minutes 14 seconds.
A rugby football match will soon be as long as a gridiron match!
Apart from the length of time taken and the effect on the players of having to stand around for prolonged periods, one longer than the old half-time used to be, there is also bewilderment for the spectators.
They are not used to it and suddenly there is a break in play. Nobody is injured. Nobody is fiddling with the referee’s broadcast apparatus. There is just nothing. At home it’s not so bad because the commentators can rattle on. On the cold, gloomy stand there is nothing.
In gridiron football the spectators are told that this is happening with the throwing of a flag onto the field of play.
For the technician/producer who is asked to fish out the evidence it is especially hard. In incident 7 above play had to be taken back 50 metres to the other side of the field.
One wise man said: “If we go on like this we are going to produce mediocre referees, passive touch judges and brilliant TMOs.”
Of well, patientia vincit omnia – patience conquers all.
