More tries as Super 14 moves into fast lane
More tries as Super 14 moves into fast lane
17th January 2008, 9:15 WST West Australian
Stuart Dickinson, the referee who helped decide last November’s rugby World Cup final, says new laws to be introduced to this year’s Super 14 competition will produce more tries.
Dickinson was the central figure in the cup final’s most controversial incident when, as television match official, he had to decide from video replays whether England winger Mark Cueto had scored what looked to be the game’s opening try.
He determined Cueto’s foot was in touch before the ball had been grounded, denied the score and South Africa went on to win.
Australia’s only referee at the World Cup is spending the week in Perth to help the Western Force adjust to the new rules before the Super 14 season kicks off on February 15.
He said the most noticeable effect would be to open up a sport increasingly dominated by defence.
“The game will be faster and the ball will be in play for longer,” he said. “More ball plus greater fatigue equals more tries.
“Having the offside line 5m behind the scrum gives the attacking team a greater chance to move.
“Similarly, the offside line at the tackle means teams which get behind the defensive line get more space and options.”
Dickinson said the most noticeable difference for spectators would be the reduction in the number of penalty kicks.
“They’ll see a lot of tap kicks leading to attacking moves,” he said. Force sports science manager Haydn Masters revealed the club’s performance analysts had studied the effect of the new rules on last year’s Australian Rugby Championship and discovered the ball was in play for about three minutes more.
“Some passages of play went on for up to four minutes before players got the chance to grab a rest,” he said. “That meant we put a large emphasis on aerobic fitness planning for the new season, especially for the big guys.
“Our front-rowers have done a lot of running and are in the best condition yet heading into a competition.”
Prop AJ Whalley admitted after training he was hauling his 117kg frame around the field a lot faster and farther than previously.
“The Australian Rugby Championship was a lot faster with the new rules and Super 14 is going to be even more so,” he said.
“There’s heaps more running for me to do now.”
He felt Dickinson’s presence at training would give the Force an advantage come game time.
“I’ve learnt a lot about how the scrum calls will be done,” Whalley said.
The team’s first pre-season outing will be against the Crusaders at Melbourne on February 2, followed by a match against the Reds at Members Equity Stadium on February 7. The team then leaves for Durban to prepare for the season opener against the Sharks.
DAVE HUGHES
I wonder who got his spuds in a vice then...
ELVs 'a dual edged sword' for Super 14
December 5, 2007
Leading Australian rugby referee Stuart Dickinson has warned teams will be able to slow down as well as speed up the game under the Experimental Law Variations to be introduced in next year's Super 14 tournament.
Administrators anticipate a quicker game with the ball in play more often with free kicks rather than penalties to be awarded for most offences other than off-side or foul play.
In the recent Australian Rugby Championship, teams often showed a willingness to take a quick tap.
Dickinson, who refereed three matches under the existing laws at the recent World Cup, emphasised the canny teams could also wind the clock down with their decisions.
"Everyone talks about it's going to be a faster game and those sorts of things, yes, teams have the option if they want to play a quick game," Dickinson said.
"But if you have a team which is very strong at set pieces and gets free kicks, they are still able to have the ability to wind the clock down a little bit I suppose by having scrums and to apply that sort of technical pressure and mental pressure to teams.
"You may well see the good sides, look at first phase play and ball off a scrum with the teams five metres back maybe better ball for them rather than a quick tap and having broken field."
Dickinson explained the kind of decisions that referees would now have to make because of the new variations.
"I think it just changes the dynamics when you're actually talking about deliberate infringement versus just a normal infringement and then where are you going to go to, in terms of if you do go to a penalty or card, those sort of things," Dickinson said.
"There's just different dynamics in terms of the decision and the consequence of that decision, but it still gives the teams the option of doing what they want."
Dickinson has yet to officiate in a match in which the ELV's were being used.
He had the option prior to going to the World Cup but decided against it.
"We sat down and had a chat about it and thought what would be the best preparation for me personally," Dickinson said.
"The other thing you have to look at when you're refereeing is what is the fairest things for the teams you are going to referee.
"If I go out and stuff up a game because I'm not use to the change over in laws, it's unfair to those teams that have been preparing for four years for a World Cup."
The first Australian referee to officiate at three World Cups, Dickinson was also a TMO for three games including the final in which he made the contentious call to disallow a try to England winger Mark Cueto.
He aimed to earn a spot at the 2011 World Cup, but was also looking for some part-time work with a corporate organisation to prepare himself for life after rugby.
Dickinson joined a select group of referees turned authors, by penning a rugby World Cup diary, which was released shortly after the tournament.
© 2008 AAP
