On Rugby-Talk’s live Bulls vs Reds thread I cannot recall anybody complaining about it. Now reading some of the other match reports is see a big uproar about something we never picked up or said a word about. Obstruction or obstructive running.

This will not be a long article because like I said, none of us seemed to pick it up or complain about it. Were  we just “politically correct” or gutless enough not to make a fuss about the poor performance by the referee and thus did not make a big issue? If you read other reports, I wonder why and ask whether we have gone soft or do WE see and understand the game better.

The Rugby 365 article says:

“The only blot on what was another sublime performance for the Reds is some of the blatant cheating they are allowed to get away with. You have to wonder when referees are going to start penalising them for the manner in which they interfere with defenders off the ball, away and on the wrong side of ruck.

That often creates the gaps that so regularly appear when they are on attack.

But take nothing away from the Brisbane team, they play to the whistle and if match officials allow them to ‘create’ opportunities like that, they can’t be faulted for continuing to do so”

How did we miss all that? Seems like it is not only against us. A few years back the Brumbies used those tactics , is it now part of the Reds game. Well the comments on the Rugby365 article suggest so.

I quote again, from the comments:

“Good for this article writer for pointing out Reds “blatant cheating”. Not only do they blatantly go off-side at breakdowns, they deliberately run in a manner that blocks a tackler from getting unimpeded to a ball carrier.
Said the writer: “You have to wonder when referees are going to start penalising them for the manner in which they interfere with defenders off the ball, away and on the wrong side of ruck.” (Nothing less than the All Blacks did last season!) “That often creates the gaps that so regularly appear when they are on attack.” Precisely!”

OK that is enough quoting….

Tell us whether you picked up refereeing bias and blatant cheating. I must be honest, as a person who is often critical of referees, I was happy, never picked it up. A few other mistakes yes and some that could have been match defining moments but not this.

A favorite Afrikaans writer JJ Harmse saw the ones we seemed to see and he wrote this in the Rapport (Afrikaans newspaper):

“Ses drieë teen drie vertel egter dat die tuisspan, wat ’n sesde agtereenvolgende oorwinning behaal het, te veel skietgoed gehad het vir die Bulls, maar minstens twee daarvan moes nooit gewees het nie.

Eers is die Bulls sleg te na gekom toe die skeidsregter Bryce Lawrence bevind het ’n skrumbal van die Reds is by die bek uit (that one bdb picked up)– en kort daarna het Zane Kirchner(that happens a lot to Zane, refs believe he holds on , but what about releasing the tackled player) se verdediger hom nooit laat los in ’n duikslag nie en in albei gevalle kon die Reds drieë druk van balle wat eintlik Bulls-ingooie moes gewees het.

Maar dit daar gelaat”