Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 2:11 pm  

Maybe it's inevitable refs have struggled at times with the pace of the game, smiffy27 pointed out a lot of the difficulties they have to contend with, plus Coaches or assistants approaching the half time dressing room querying their decisions, all this is then channelled back to the RFL and referees committee they listen then feel the need for something to be done.

Maybe all the chants "you don't know what your doing" and "your not fit to referee" has tipped them over the edge.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 2:52 pm  

There is a lot more money in the Aussie game. They can do without us but can we do without them? For some years now they have unilaterally changed the rules to which they play without any sanction from us because we have no influence over what they do. Ultimately I think they will get their way and it may be a good thing because nobody can put up refereeing standards in this country as the yardstick for imitation.
From what I saw the play the ball was much tidier when there was an Australian ref officiating and the players on all teams knew they could take liberties when Bentham was in charge. These guys and the coaches study the refs and look for any weakness they can exploit. Bentham bends over backwards to explain himself to the players which IMO encourages players disputing decisions and distracts his attention from what is going on. Give me an Eric Clay any day when all the players know who was running the game and dissent would be dealt with. After all he is refereeing a RL game not running a debating society.
Maybe with 2 refs more foul play, including late hits on the kicker, will be dealt with instead of the lottery of inconsistently just penalising the offence of the month as laid down by Mr Cummings and his "protocols"

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 3:01 pm  

it is nothing to do with the Aussies whingeing about losing last weekend.

This idea was trialled during the 2014 season in the Under 19s. Our game at Hull FC was the first one to try it and it worked very well. The refs that day were Phil Bentham and Matt Thomason.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 3:34 pm  

One ref or two, i'm pretty sure the teams & coaches would soon get the message if the ref stamped his authority from the kick off & penalised any dissent with a further 10 yards . Maybe involving the touch judges more would help in the general flow of the game but ultimately the game can only be policed by a consensus involving referees ,players & coaches to decide what type of rugby will be served up to the paying customers who can then vote with their feet to show either their pleasure or lack of with respect to the state of the game.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 3:45 pm  

ninearches wrote:

One ref or two, i'm pretty sure the teams & coaches would soon get the message if the ref stamped his authority from the kick off & penalised any dissent with a further 10 yards . Maybe involving the touch judges more would help in the general flow of the game but ultimately the game can only be policed by a consensus involving referees ,players & coaches to decide what type of rugby will be served up to the paying customers who can then vote with their feet to show either their pleasure or lack of with respect to the state of the game.

Totally agree with the ref stamping his authority and penalising dissent but how can he do this and arrive at a consensus with the coaches? Is it not the players and coaches who are constantly pushing the boundaries of what they can get away with?
If they enforced the rules of the game consistently, including in finals, the coaches would soon get the message.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 4:02 pm  

It's something that needs the RFL to be involved in by saying these are the rules ,stick to them or the ref will penalise you. How many times do we see rules at the start of a season that just seem to disappear or ,like the crossing rule that suddenly seemed to be implemented part way through last season then fizzled out again. The participants in the game govern what we see on the terraces ,so do they want us to see an open,flowing & entertaining spectacle or a wrestling match?What do we as an audience want to see from the terraces ,entertainment or wrestling ?

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 4:16 pm  

As long as the silly obstruction rule is binned I'll be fine.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 5:07 pm  

I'm from Manchester and have a lot of football and boxing fan mates and there are a lot of rugby union clubs in Manchester. To my mates, when I talk about rugby, I have to remind them which code I like. I usually say "the faster, slicker version of rugby". To which I get "oh the six tackles one?" in reply.

Well, in recent years I think some of our games have been painful to watch because of all the slowing down of the ruck and my justification of our sport as the faster, slicker version was starting to get a bit of a lie.

If two refs can speed up the ruck and the game in general, I'm all for it!

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 7:02 pm  

As someone who plays God's own game. The idea of speeding the game up more than it already is terrifies me.

Re: Super League to introduce 2 refs : Thu Nov 20, 2014 10:56 pm  

wireone wrote:

Maybe with 2 refs more foul play, including late hits on the kicker, will be dealt with instead of the lottery of inconsistently just penalising the offence of the month as laid down by Mr Cummings and his "protocols"

That would be quite difficult considering Stuart Cummings hasn't been employed by the RFL since April 2013.