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Messages - Alfie75

Pages: [1] 2 3 4 5 6 ... 19
1
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Raynal Retires
« on: Tue 26 Mar 2024 17:18 »
I have him pencilled in for New Zealand v England series along with Gardner as that would make sense to me and use the Kiwi's/Englishmen for the the South Africa v Ireland series. Don't see him on the Australia v Wales tour after some issues with both nations in recent years.

2
Non Footy Appointments / Raynal Retires
« on: Tue 26 Mar 2024 11:33 »
Have to say I am a little bit shocked to see that Mathieu Raynal has decided to retire after the Summer internationals.
Interesting read below:

https://www.planetrugby.com/news/its-very-hard-to-be-100-all-the-time-rugby-world-cup-referee-hangs-up-his-whistle

Always rated Raynal and glad to see he will remain within Rugby working for the FFR.

So, the next group of French referees are very inexperienced at test level and I would suspect they will feature heavily in the next few windows. Pierre Brousett would seemingly be the 1st choice with Tual Trianini & Luc Ramos moving up the ladder.

There is now a real shift with the SH boys of O Keeffe, Williams, Gardner & Berry leading the pack. Luke Pearce is really the only other referee that has similar experience of  potentially attending his 3rd WC in 2027.

Along with the above mentioned, Carley & Dickson, Amashukeli & Brace I would imagine will be on that list meaning that there will be 3 spots opening up for debutants in Australia.


3
Yep agree RCG with those comments - especially about Amashukeli!!

4
Non Footy Appointments / New WR Refereeing structure
« on: Thu 21 Mar 2024 12:40 »
If you missed this - link below:

https://www.world.rugby/news/912176/accelerating-talent-development-increased-investment-and-targeted-support-structures-at-the-heart-of-new-emirates-world-rugby-match-officials-strategy

World Rugby has announced details of a new strategic approach that will transform high-performance match officiating on the global stage. 
With a new global calendar approved, including expanded Rugby World Cups, the structure features new specialist coaches, a new selection and performance management process and a long-term plan to identify and develop global talent. 
Significantly, supporting World Rugby’s purpose of making the game more accessible and relevant, the men’s and women’s elite structures are identical and will operate closely together, promoting the best match officials to the top of the game regardless of gender.
The men’s and women’s selection group will feature independent Chairs, selectors representing the north and south, and the respective World Rugby referee manager. Under Director of Rugby Phil Davies, the match officials management group has been expanded and will now include a Talent Identification Manager, women’s and men’s 15s match official coaches, a women’s pathway manager and emerging nations match official support. 
The strategy, which will be embedded from next month, will operate closely across all major elite club competitions, delivering a consistent approach to match officiating regardless of location through a data-driven scorecard approach performance management. This will drive clarity and consistency across competitions and teams. 

Men’s Emirates World Rugby High Performance Match Officials structure
The management team will continue to be led by Elite Men’s Match Officials Manager Joël Jutge and joined by experienced international match official Brendon Pickerill in a new position of Elite Men’s 15s Match Officials Head Coach (having stepped down from refereeing duties). 
Chaired by World Rugby Executive Board member Brett Robinson, the new selection group comprises independent selectors Dave McHugh (North) and Mitch Chapman (South), along with Jutge, Pickerill and Davies.

Women’s Emirates World Rugby High Performance Match Officials structure
The management team will continue to be led by Elite Women’s Match Officials Manager Alhambra Nievas and joined by experienced international match official Joy Neville in the new position of Elite Women’s 15s Match Officials Head Coach, while a new Women’s Match Officials Pathway Manager role will be filled.   
Chaired by World Rugby Executive Board member Su Carty, the new selection group comprises Andrew Macpherson (North) and Wayne Erickson (interim, South), along with Nievas, Neville and Davies.   
Emirates World Rugby Sevens Match Officials structure

In sevens, Elite Sevens Manager Paddy O’Brien will continue to be supported by High Performance Sevens Coach Craig Joubert. 
Within the management group, former international referee John Lacey has been appointed into the new position of Talent Identification Manager across the men’s and women’s 15s and will work closely with the Women’s Pathway Manager and emerging nations support staff to identify and nurture the best match officiating talent from around the world. All structures will have access to specialist scrum, lineout, performance and mental wellbeing coaches including Alex Corbisiero and Richie Gray.   

Really interesting that Pickerill joins the 15's SMT considering how little refereeing experience he has at International level (Only 10 tests). In effect he's the number 2 to Judge. I'm assuming Stuart Berry will continue in his TMO manager capacity. I'm sure that Tony Spreadbury & Bryce Lawrence will have close contact with the SMT too.
I'm also surprised that Joubert continues on the 7's circuit and not moved into the 15's team.
Apart from Neville & Joubert and to a degree Jutdge - the management team were not the number 1 officials in their respective countries.


5
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Wed 20 Mar 2024 08:45 »
Can't argue with that tbh!!

6
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Sun 17 Mar 2024 12:06 »
WeeK 5 Review
England & Italy's win over Ireland  and Scotland respectively ensured that each match had something riding on it coming into this final weekend of 6 Nations Rugby (dubbed "Super Saturday"). We had potentially 3 mouthwatering fixtures to look forward to.
So, here we go with my review (for what it's worth):

Wales v Italy - Mathieu Raynal
Italy have finished last for the past 9 years but, the win against Scotland had moved them 4 points clear of Wales and could actually finish as high as 3rd place (other results pending) which would be their best ever finish whilst Wales had not finished in the wooden spoon position since 2003. The odd's were always against Gatland's side here after a winless campaign to date.
In effect, if Italy win or draw - Wales would finish bottom. Even if Italy lost with a losing bonus point, Wales would need to score 4 try's and overturn the points difference. If Italy lost with no bonus point, the Welsh would still need to overcome the points difference.
This wooden spoon decider had the added emotion of George North's decision to retire from international competition earlier this week.
Let's be honest, this wasn't the greatest match of the tournament in terms of quality. I have to say Wales were so poor in the first half (as they were against Scotland), with just too many errors, whilst Italy completely dominated and went into the break deservedly ahead. I get that this is a re-building job, BUT, you can't play so poorly for 70 minutes and expect to overturn deficits. In reality, the Welsh played rugby for a 10 minute period and the actual result flattered them. Italy were far the better side and deserved the victory which is great for the 6 Nations as a whole!
So pleased for the Italians - they have been the most improved side during the tournament!!
I understand Gatland's resignation afterwards was rejected by the WRU, my goodness, he has a hell of a job turning this team around!
For Mathieu Raynal, this appointment was an interesting one for me. If I'm honest, I would have expected the WC QF referee to have got a let's say "bigger appointment" on paper (no disrespect to both teams). The fact that it was on the final weekend may have had some impact when the appointments were made by WR initially.
None the less, he still had a job to do and to be fair it was a relatively quiet afternoon for the Frenchman. He controlled the game well with no real issues. A competent performance shall we say.
As we continue to say on this forum, we are not going to agree with every decision the referee makes and this was the case for me. It was highlighted for me in the 14th minute when Joy Neville intervened to overturn the Welsh penalty in favour of the Italians for obstruction - a harsh call!
I also thought that some penalties at the scrum should have gone the other way.
I did however feel the correct decision was made in the 63rd minute to over-turn the original "no-try" call by Raynal for Wales.
Overall, this unassuming approach worked well for Mathieu - a solid match for France's number 1 whistleblower.

Ireland v Scotland - Matthew Carley
Ireland may not have been able to claim back-to-back Grand Slams however, heading into this game, the were the clear favourites to retain the title. Bonus points and points difference could also come into play too along with the even more ludicrous scenario of winning less matches whilst still capturing the championship.
The Scot's could still mathematically win their first 6 Nations with the more realistic goal of potentially winning the triple crown (something they haven't achieved since 1990).
This match was always going to be interesting to see how they reacted after losses the previous week and had the making of being an absolute cracker!
Well, what a gift to Ireland for their first try by the Scot's with total lack of concentration. After 40 minutes though, we could well have been on for an upset after an evenly contested  and cagey first half. A completely different story in the second period though. After some unforced errors and brave Scottish defence, Ireland took control and eventually outplayed/dominated Townsend's men deservedly winning this fixture and with it the title!
Whilst congratulations are in order for Andy Farrell and his side, as the tournament progressed, they certainly weren't the team that finished how they started the tournament with a fabulous display against the French in round 1. At times they looked rattled and uncomfortable in their subsequent matches (credit to their opposition I guess).
I'm also going to be quite harsh on the Scot's. There is no question they are a decent side. The fact of the matter remains for the 3rd straight year they have only won 3 matches and I actually don't see any progression moving forward. The question has to be asked - Has Gregor done all that he can for this team?
Ultimately, they must be disappointed with this campaign yet again!!
Matthew Carley got the nod from WR in this appointment - I think a decent appointment too giving this was always going to be a decisive fixture. I also felt that he needed to deliver a stellar performance to challenge Luke & Karl for the battle of England's number 1 referee.
And, to be fair I thought that's exactly what he did! He has been criticised on this forum before for being robotic and I believe he is a no-nonsense referee that at times may not relate to the players. However,  I thought he was clear, cool, calm and delivered a polished performance.
As always, there are talking points: There were a couple of "no-try" decisions for Marius Jonker to assist with and I think on balance probably got them correct. The Scottish yellow card was also the right one in the 64th minute. The other main talking point was the yellow card in the 75th minute for Harry Byrne. Carley followed the protocol and issued the yellow with a review which remained yellow. For me, there is an argument that a red card could have been issued as this is exactly the kind of head contact WR want to remove from the game. Ultimately, that was the decision and I'm sure this would be discussed in the follow up meeting.
Overall, Matt should be pleased with his showing in what was the title deciding match.

France v England - Angus Gardner
England's slim hopes of snatching the title away from Ireland were dashed with the result of the game in Dublin. So, this match was being played for pride and placing. Both teams were riding high after wins in their previous outing. We had to save the best game of the weekend for last - and boy did we get it!
What a belter of a match - particularly in the second half and of course the drama right at the death! Have to say, what an atmosphere too!!
The French dominated the first period in the main with a distinctly average England performance. The Lawrence try at the end of that first period really spurred Borthwick's side who were a completely different team in the opening 15 minutes of the second half (what a contrast) as they exploded into gear with some unbelievable try's. The French were all over the place.
I just don't understand what happened after the Smith try - England just stopped playing which let the French back in again. This was one hell of a ding-dong battle! Ramos quite literally saved the home-side with some superb kicking ability!
Then, the drama - The try, the 79th minute penalty, the converted kick and France snatched runner's up spot, just incredible! Fair play to the French, they just about deserved it!!
Couldn't ask for more in a pulsating match that had everyone on the edge of their seats!!
As for Angus Gardner - Well, after I applauded his officiating in his first appointment a week earlier, I have to say, I enjoyed his performance again this week!
I mentioned earlier, we are just not going to agree with everything. Let's start with that 79th minute penalty. Some pundits are saying it's a soft penalty, but it is a penalty and I think he's got it right! Also , there could well have been an off-side too during that phase. On balance a penalty is the right decision.
Have to say, earlier on I thought Freeman was very lucky not to receive a yellow card for that knock-on and who knows what could have happened there.
It's a game of margins and on balance I thought Angus refereed the match really well. He's continued his good form and should be really pleased with how he's handled both matches of the tournament. He's established himself as a top top referee - Good job!
Ultimately, for both teams, I think they will be pleased how they have ended this tournament and both sides have shown improvement as the 6 Nations have progressed. They are not perfect by any stretch but, they are getting there!

Have to say - Again decent refereeing performances all round. A solid job by the officials this week!

Another good weekend of rugby (not on the same level as last weekend), the drama in that last match encases what this 6 Nations is all about. There is nothing quite like it!


7
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Tue 12 Mar 2024 08:52 »
This coming weekend will be fascinating to watch for me - all equally matched teams currently and potentially the most exciting could very well be the wooden spoon encounter where Raynal is a pretty decent fit to officiate.
Carley reminds me a lot of Alain Rolland - a very strict no-nonsense approach that works for him and actually may well be good for the Irish.
Gardner will generally let the match in France flow I feel (which could very well benefit France).
We shall see!!

8
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Sun 10 Mar 2024 20:07 »
Week 4 Review

Well, what a difference a couple of weeks make! After what was in truth a technically poor weekend of rugby the previous match day and for me not the best officiating either, we needed this weekend to produce on all levels and boy did it - week 4 was an absolute cracker!
Have to say on Saturday night, I was a very happy man and a bit emotional (after numerous alcoholic beverages that contributed to the emotion hahah)!!

Italy v Scotland - Angus Gardner
The theme going into this fixture was that Scotland would score heavily and then drop off in the second half whilst Italy would generally be the opposite - In the main, that’s exactly what we saw.
Have to say what a thoroughly enjoyable game to open this set of fixtures. It was never going to be easy for Townsend’s men as Italy were quite literally robbed of a famous win over France, you could sense that the Azzuri were well up for this one!
Great game to watch as I said, I have to say that the passion and determination was there for all to see. Added to that the fantastic crowd made for an enthralling watch. The new regime has certainly changed the approach and boy did it pay off today. For me, the question is can they continue in this trajectory as it’s exactly what the 6 Nations needs (all times to be competitive)?
As for the Scot’s - Well, what can you say? It seems to be a common theme with them, we’ve been praising how good they had been for the first 3 matches and then they go and faulter towards the end. With a huge match on the final weekend, they could walk away from this campaign hugely disappointed. They just fell away in the end and Italy came up thoroughly deserved winners!
For the World Cup semi-final referee, this was Angus Gardner’s 1st of two appointments (replacing the retired Jaco Peyper). He always has a very communicative approach with the players (almost coaching them). Today, I actually felt he was quieter than usual. Whilst I didn’t agree with all the penalty decisions (especially in the first half against the Italians), overall, I felt he had a very solid performance. There we only a couple of talking points:
I agreed with the Scottish “no try” in the 42nd minute for obstruction. There was also a good TMO intervention in the 76th minute for the deliberate Italian knock-on. What was interesting was the fact that Karl Dickson initially disagreed with Angus over whether a penalty try should have been awarded. I’m pleased the Aussie stuck to his original decision of penalty only as for me that was the correct call.
The other point I noticed was right at the start of the game where once again the ball came off the T for the first Italian penalty. I thought “ Oh no here we go again!”. Thankfully Gardner was quick to stop any charge down and probably the officials were told in no uncertain terms to police this area following the mess in the previous round!
Angus should be pleased with his performance ready for “Le Crunch” next weekend!

England v Ireland - NIka Amashukeli
Well, I was lucky enough to be in attendance at Twickenham. What a game, what and atmosphere and boy what an end! Have to say, I haven’t heard the “home of rugby” sound so buoyant for a long long time and as with the Italy game, from the moment I got to the ground, I could sense we were going to see something special!
Why oh why can’t England play like that all the time?!! After they were rightfully panned for their performance against the Scot’s at Murrayfield, I have to say I was hoping for a response and we certainly got that! For Ireland, well it shows just how difficult winning grand slams are. England played with determination, passion and pretty much stopped the Irish playing the way they wanted to (particularly in the first half). Yesterday, they were rattled and it showed!
I was also very keen to see the Young Georgian referee Amashukeli and he certainly didn’t disappoint me.
Nika has continued from the World Cup performing well and was rightfully handed this fixture. Yesterday, he got the decisions correct - his was so calm, clear and has the right balance with his communication style that the players respect. During the game, he only got involved when needed and quite honestly his officiating was perfect for this fixture.
Two talking points which I feel he got right - the disallowed try for a knock-on and the Mahoney yellow card was spot on.
This guy has pure raw talent - if he continues to the levels he has been performing, the Georgian will be one of the leading match officials for many a year!

Wales v France - Luke Pearce
Could we see another potential upset after the previous two games? Not quite, but for 50 minutes Wales were certainly in the game!
Gatland’s men have gained a bit of respect for the way their youth and inexperience has approached games with a “never give up” attitude - but it was exactly that youth and lack of experience that ultimately cost them with the almighty power from the French.
A cracking  first half through some great attacking and at times horrible defending from both sides made for compelling viewing. When the Welsh came out and scored in the first few minutes of the second period, I thought we could well see an upset on the cards here. Credit to Le Blues as the actually put on a totally dominant performance for the remaining 30 minutes and ultimately ran out deserved winners putting them up to 3rd in the table.
It was Luke Pearce’s second appointment of the tournament and once again he has shown me just what a top-notch referee he really is! His communication was clear and concise, looked extremely comfortable with the whistle. In my opinion, he is up there as one of the very best in the world right now!
Again, only a couple of points to note. The 56th minute try was correctly disallowed for a know-on, In the 70th minute there were inconclusive pictures to see if France were off-side for their try (I’ll go with the officials on this one).
Very good tournament for the Englishman and I fully expect him to receive plum appointments in the Summer window.

It’s great for the 6 Nations that needed probably the most exciting weekend of international rugby since the magic WC quarter final weekend. For two and a half games we saw some great entertainment and a spectacle which tells you what rugby union is all about!
I also have to say the officiating this weekend certainly contributed to a fantastic advert for the game! Bravo!!
Can’t wait for next weekend as every match has something riding on it.

9
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Tue 27 Feb 2024 16:48 »
Crikey, I actually thought Piardi was all over the place, for example - pinging for crooked feed on one side and not the other which was far more blatant, I thought he was terribly inconsistent!
I also thought he was really pedantic especially against the Welsh in the first half and perhaps subconsciously changed the approach in the second half.
Brace's experience certainly helped him and I thought out of the 3 performed the better.
Agree, the games all had some intrigue but really lacked in quality. Wales & Italy's character really shone through whilst I thought this was Ireland's poorest showing, yet were very comfortable whilst Scotland didn't have to get out of second gear (especially in the second half).
Yet again England were really poor for 60 minutes and France's WC hangover lingers on as they were once again average at best from what we have come back to expect.
Really interesting how opinions differ :-)

10
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Tue 27 Feb 2024 09:03 »
Sorry @ Hendo, I'm away at the moment on business so not a huge amount of time to put a detailed analysis this week, try and get back to normal for the final two weeks!!
I find it incredible that Ridley who was right in front didn't ping the French players for encroachment - this is just the most blatant penalty at a critical period of the game. I then find it really strange that newspaper reports suggest he was exemplary when he missed that! The top refs will be brave enough to make that call and quite how no-one picked this up was just awful!!
All we ask is for consistency with technical things occur during the game - we had the ball fall off the T in the Ireland v Wales game and the watch was stopped but not in this game?
Being half Italian maybe I am biased haha! But generally, I didn't agree with a number of decisions given. Now with that last non-decision, I came away feeling incredibly frustrated!!
I said before, I rate Christophe but I wasn't comfortable with his style. Maybe a bit harsh and I'll have to re-watch the game.

11
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Mon 26 Feb 2024 16:45 »
I have 3P's for the officiating in week 3, I'm not one to trash officials as they have such a tough job BUT the standard has deteriorated from week 1 culminating in poor, pedantic and at times perplexing refereeing across the 3 matches. Have to say the debutants didn't impress in their matches. It's a shame really as I rate both Christophe and Andrea.

12
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Tue 13 Feb 2024 18:00 »
I thought Luke was pretty good Sunday and he's matured into an impressive referee - great to see, how he's not regarded as England's number 1 is beyond comprehension for me, with Dickson seemingly ahead in that regard.
I have to say I really didn't enjoy James Doleman's approach to the England Wales game, and whilst he may have been technically correct with certain calls, I think he lacked empathy and rapport with the players. I also thought he was overly fussy. Agree, he's not a bad referee at all but no-where near O Keeffe & Williams.
I also have to say I wasn't a fan of Nic Berry (who I rate) I just got the impression he was struggling out there and looked for guidance quite a lot. I also felt he talked so much to compensate for this. On the other hand, I absolutely can see why he called no try right at the end in a really difficult position. No issues for me with his original call.

13
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Sun 11 Feb 2024 10:18 »
I don't think Luke did anything wrong - he was appointed as 4th Official in the final. WR seemed to prefer putting Dickson & Carley in an AR role over Pearce.
I think you can see the group was very close and they all seemed to genuinely care about each other, which was great to see - The reality was that if England wasn't getting to the final everyone really deep down knew Wayne would get the final after missing out last year and he was the popular choice by fellow officials around him.
I think Nic Berry has performed really well in both his WC tournaments (thought he was excellent in 19 too).
Gutted for Jaco - he just hasn't had any luck in the WC tournaments he's been involved in!
I agree I would have liked to have seen a few episodes really going into detail as the tournament progressed and the backstage discussions.
But a good film which I hope will continue moving forward.

14
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Wed 07 Feb 2024 17:12 »
Unfortunately Luke Pearce has had to replace Pierre Brousset as referee for Ireland vs Italy as he hasn't recovered from the injury he sustained a few weeks ago.

Shame for Pierre, but great to see Luke twice and his 50th appointment!!
Congrats to Mr Pearce.

15
Non Footy Appointments / Re: Six Nations 2024
« on: Wed 07 Feb 2024 17:09 »
Agree with those comments. Thought it was a really good watch. I would actually have liked to have seen more of exactly why they came to the appointing decisions.
Clear also Joel has Bryce Lawrence, Craig Joubert, Stuart Berry & Tony Spreadbury as the main selectors during the tournament. Couldn't recognise any of the others.
However, I looked at it that Luke, Andy & Nika were in line for a QF along with Matthieu (who they opted for).
Joel basically said, yes there were mistakes but Ben still should be rewarded.
In the hierarchy, it was clear that Carley received a low mark for his handling of the Wales v Fiji game, saw a few ambers but the rest were green. I can understand that shot did potentially show Paul, Nika and Matthew were in the lowest tier, but, we can't be 100% sure. I would also imagine like in football the actual games are graded too. So, even if you had a decent match with Chile v Argentina - your mark would never be over a certain number and automatically keep you low.


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