Use of the TMO
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@kruse said in Use of the TMO:
@crucial said in Use of the TMO:
@kruse said in Use of the TMO:
@nepia said in Use of the TMO:
@crucial Couldn't the ref had just stayed with his decision? Just told Ayoub, my angle I saw it grounded, I'm awarding the try?
I think the wording that Ayoub used pretty much forced his hand... didn't he say something like "I can see clear and obvious evidence of an arm under the ball" - or something like that?
It seemed to me like the ref was going to stay with his decision, said multiple times that he had seen it grounded... and George just kept upping his stake until he went the nuclear option, pulled out the Ace card - "clear and obvious" - check, and mate.
(Edited to include even more mixed metaphors. I think that's a new personal record.)Problem was that George wasn't asked for clear and obvious arm under ball, he was asked if there was a clear and obvious reason not to award a try. His response could have been 'I can clearly see an arm under the ball but cannot confirm yes or no on grounding, back to on-field decision'
Oh yes - nobody's denying that George was a twat from start to finish. My observation is pointing out how much of a twat he was.... I got the impression he realised that the ref was going to ignore him, so pulled out all the stops to stop him from doing so, with the "clear and obvious" bullshit.
I made the point elsewhere that much of our perception of the TMO problem stems from this man.
He was a shite ref. A shite head of reffing for Australia, followed by being a shite TMO.
The sooner he retires (or gets fired) the better.
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Check out this letter sent to Football365 regarding VAR at the World Cup. I found myself thinking of this discussion, and nodding my head in agreement. Obviously soccer-focused, but change a few soccer terms for rugby ones and it's on point
"Welcome to Rule Ball, people! Where teams compete to see how much they can cheat, con, harangue and play act. A competition to see how well they can manipulate and intimidate the referee enough to gain advantage for their team! The crowd can join in too! Forget about goals, it’s VAR referrals you’ve come to see and we can promise you plenty!!!!
Last night was abysmal. If there ever was a spirit of the game, it has well and truly been exorcised. As flawed as the ‘old’ system was, there was one thing absolute; the referee’s authority. It could be discussed, protested, deplored but not overruled. VAR, on the other hand creates doubt, uncertainty, indecision and ultimately panic. Yes, panic. I reckon some of these refs are bricking it when they hear something has gone to referral – “oh shit, what have I missed now!” Pomposity and arrogance are a good thing for a person being shouted at for being a “piston wristed gibbon” for close to 2 hours, especially when they need to control 22 baying idiots who expel any decency and sportsmanship from their character as soon as the whistle blows.
Sepp Blatter, for all his many faults, had a few decent traits. One of them was his guiding principle that the football played in the World Cup final should be the same as any match played anywhere on the planet at any level. And in that was included the rules and how they were officiated. What’s wrong with that? Elite footballers are already as removed from the general masses as multi-millionaire elite young athletes can be. Why not apply this one leveller?
Also people seem to be losing sight of what the rules are actually for. They are there to ensure a game of association football can take place. They overarching aim is that people play the bloody game. The stretching and use of rules for your own team’s advantage has been done probably seconds after the first set of rules were scratched down by posh toffs in top hats.
The offside trap is a great example – it wasn’t created so teams could step up to create an offside situation but that’s how the rule was bent to teams’ advantage. Ok, it happens. Now though, with the absolute authority of the referee removed, teams know that every rule is up for grabs to be bent, twisted, manipulated and the authority of the referee can be bypassed. Look how many players scream for VAR for everything!
For pity’s sake, we had a player geeing up the crowd to make noise as the referee went to the pitch side screen! While all that is happening the actual football has stopped being played. As I said, this is not the purpose of the rules. The rules are there principally to ensure a game of football can take place. The referees are taking centre stage too often in this World Cup through no fault of their own. That is not the purpose of football.
In conclusion, I would just like to ask how is anything improved by a 100% adherence to the rules. Not just football, anything? It leads to pettiness and the small minded taking charge of situations as they’re the only ones with the will to make sure every rule is followed. What we have at the moment is Ruleball. I want to watch football. Scrap the whole VAR nonsense, bring back Blatter’s guiding principle and let’s encourage teams and supporters to try and actually play instead of creating situations for VAR review."
