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I'm not a big fan of announcements that the attacking side will be treated more leniently. We don't want a return to Brumby ball, though they probably deliberately stopped that years ago when they introduced the law variation that enabled the tackler to stay on the “wrong” side of the tackle.
I wrote recently on another forum that the people in charge of referees did not keep up with players when professional rugby was introduced. When players had the time and facilities to prepare physically they were able to do things the average amateur never did.
Referees allowed too much leeway to these fitter athletes. Perhaps they thought they were doing a good job and were speeding up the game for them, but they ruined it in many areas. A few years ago they tried all these ELVs to solve the problems and I liked a lot of them, but the first thing they should have done was to make referees comply with the laws as they were.
In many areas referees didn't follow the law; they followed conventions that leading referees had established through use. Thus scrummies were allowed year after year to throw the ball into the scrum skew. In doing so they killed the traditional contest of striking for the ball. Thus players left their feet more and more every year until the contest for tackled ball was compromised for both sides. Thus tacklers went to ground never releasing the ball or the tackled player, or both; thus denying the attacking team quick ball: the essence of attacking rugby.
Everybody could list several more without thinking too hard. Referees changed the game.
There have been many meetings about what referees should be instucted to do and a lot of bulletins issued from them. Now there is another one: that the law requiring a tackler to let go of the tackled player will be enforced because not doing so is “actually against the law”. No shit Sherlock.
In the past these crackdowns haven't worked. Nearly 10 years ago there was a blitz on not staying on feet in the Super12 and it lasted 3 weeks.
I posted recently that referees should be brought to account: that they should be censured for non compliance and even demoted. That will cure more problems than meetings and bulletins. Dickinson was publicly upbraided for not refereeing scrums correctly in a game. Whether it was fair or not doesn't matter. What does matter is: why aren't referees publicly criticised for not observing the other things I mentioned above? Guess what they will do in the next game?
I hope that the S14 referees do follow the latest instruction and get tacklers to release the ball carrier.
Many years ago there was a rugby coach at Blackrock College in Dublin, who was also a priest. He said something like: “Next to the the Grace of God the most important thing is quick ball from the ruck.” It's still true. Let's all hope the Super14 refs have the nuts to follow the latest instruction.