Poite the 13th replaced Test ref
On Saturday Romain Poite of France was happily refereeing the Calcutta Cup match at Twickenham, the oldest Test match, when, with 22 minutes to go, he pulled up in distress with a calf injury. His assistant and compatriot Jérôme Garces replaced him. Once they had sorted out the communications system, the replacement was seamless.
It is a situation vastly disappointing for the referee and difficult for the touch judge unless he had himself mentally prepared for this eventuality.
It has not happened often in Test rugby.
The first replacement of a referee in a Test match was in 1912. The replaced referee in that instance was himself a replacement!
South Africa played Ireland at Lansdowne Road. The referee appointed Frank Potter-Irwin of England. He was ill and withdrew. In his place came another famous referee, John Tulloch of Scotland. He was injured during the match and the great Irish forward, Fred Gardiner took his place.
South Africa won 38-0, then a record for an international.
It was the only time the much-capped forward refereed a Test. He was really a player who happened to be touch judge. The other replacement referees were all international referees in their own right.
It did not happen again till 1965. Then France were playing Wales at Colombes Stadium in Paris. The referee was RW Gilliland of Ireland. He burst a blood vessel in his calf with eight minutes to go in the first half and left the field. His place was taken by Bernard Marie, a Frenchman. (Which all sounds much like the Poite-Garces case.)
France won 22-13.
In those days there were no unattached touch judges. Each team provided a touch judge. In case of an injury the home side’s touch judge would referee.
There were neither unattached referees nor unattached touch judges during Southern Hemisphere tours when travel was slow and threadbare. So when Pat Murphy left the field with a damaged knee ligament in the third test between South Africa and New Zealand in 1965, he was replaced by inexperienced Alan Taylor, who was a touch judge. In fact Murphy had nearly gone off in the second Test when he first damaged his knee.
South Africa won this dramatic Test 19-16.
In 1970 England played Wales at Twickenham. Robert Calmet of France collided with players and broke a bone in his left leg. He was replaced by the great Johnny Johnson, a policeman who had been a great player.
Wales won 17-13.
Calmet did considerably better than his compatriot, André Cuny at Cardiff Arms Park when Wales played Scotland in 1976. Cuny, a medical doctor from Grenoble and then 48 years of age, damaged a calf muscle when knocked over after 10 minutes in the second half of the match. The captains, Mervyn Davies and Mighty Mouse McLauchlan, suggested that he go off. Merion Joseph, the Welsh touch judge who was a great Test referee, also suggested that he go off. Dr Cluny soldiered on, limping way behind play. Afterwards Cuny said: “As long as I was in a position to observe clearly, I could continue to control play.”
Wales won 28-6. Dr Cluny never again refereed a Test. It was his only one.
In 1973 Ken Pattinson of England was in Paris to referee the match between France and Scotland. He was injured and on came strong, deliberate Francis Palmade of France.
France won 16-13.
Later unattached referees were introduced, and Jim Fleming of Scotland twice replaced an injured referee.
During the 1991 Rugby World Cup he replaced fellow-Scot Brian Robinson when Robinson was injured in the match between Argentina and Western Samoa – and he sent off a player from each side, Pedro Sporleder of Argentina and Mata’afa Keenan of Western Samoa.
In 1999 Colin Hawke of New Zealand damaged a calf muscle just before half-time when England played France at Twickenham. Jim Fleming replaced him.
In 2001 Tappe Henning went off injured when England played France at Twickenham and David McHugh of Ireland replaced him.
McHugh was at it again that year when England played South Africa at Twickenham and he came on for Stuart Dickinson of Australia.
It was not the only time McHugh was involved in replacement. But on the third occasion he was the man replaced. Early in the second half of the Tri-Nations match between South Africa and New Zealand in Durban, a spectator tackled him as he was setting a scrum. David McHugh damaged a shoulder and Chris White of England replaced him.
In 2003 Pablo Deluca of Argentina was refereeing the match at Murrayfield between Scotland and Wales when he was injured. Tony Spreadbury on England took his place.
The 12th case of referee replacement in a Test happened. After only 12 minutes of the Tri-Nations match between South Africa and New Zealand at Ellis Park, Nigel Williams left the field with a damaged hamstring and was replaced by Donal Courtney of Ireland. South Africa won the Test 40-26.
When the referee goes off, the No.1 touch judge takes his place. At matches there are also one or two officials, top referees at Tests, who monitor the coming and going of players from the field. One of these is labelled the No.4. If the touch judge moves up to referee, the No.4 then moves onto the line as the touch judge.
At Twickenham, Andrew Small of England was the fourth official and came on as assistant in the place of Garces, which caused much fiddling with communication equipment, getting wires put in place. At Ellis Park in 2004 Mark Lawrence was the No.4 who came onto the line. The Golden Lions Referees’ Society had had Lawrence wired up before the match in case what happened should happen.
