The Laws…

Now the season’s ended, one of the popular discussions in the clubhouses are the Laws of the game and how they’re working, and what needs changing. Certainly it’s a question always posed to me and one I do try and side step! However, this week I thought I comment on a few areas I believe are working and some that perhaps could do with some massaging. I would point out though that these are the views of Nigel Owens on a personal level, and have nothing to do with my employers, the WRU.

In the last few years, we’ve probably seen more Law changes than we’ll see for the next 100 years! However, this is part of the change of rugby and the move to a better spectator sport and, as the marketing people say, a better product. If you look at the last season, there were some titanic games of rugby and some very attractive ones. This tells me that the Laws are basically fine, and it’s now more to do with their application and, importantly, the players’ attitude, than anything else. If both of these are in order, then you’ll get a good game of rugby. I think we’re well past the dark days of the ELV’s and certainly I think the tackle/contact area laws are very well sorted and we’re seeing some real attacking intent as a result of that.

One of the areas that does frustrate me a little is the scrum. It amazes me how variable this can be, and perhaps I’d like to see one level of the Crouch Touch Pause Engage process removed- Crouch Hold Engage being more suitable in my eyes. It’ is all about rhythm and I think that longer hold/pause time actually can unbalance the players as they struggle to hold pressure coming through them. So, certainly, if the IRB removed on layer from that process, I’d not complain.

Another thought I have is that, in order to again speed the game up, when the ball alights at the back of the ruck I believe there should be a ‘use it or lose it’ policy applied to the half back or acting half back. Maybe a 5 second option, but certainly not the 20 and 30 seconds we now see when sides want to arrange pods or run down the clock. I feel this would inject pace into the re-cycling process and that would benefit the attractiveness of the game.

On the Ruckingball forums, one of our posters also raised an interesting point regarding knock ons close to the goal line, and again I think this is something we could look at. When an attacking side knocks on over the try line and the ball is touched down, I believe the defenders should have the option of defensive scrum 5 or 22 drop. This would inhibit sides with a much more powerful scrum from simply re winning the ball from their own mistake in a prime attacking position. This happened in the Gloucester/Saints game, where Hartley knocked on over the try line, and Gloucester then were awarded a defending scrum. Lo and behold, Saints’ front row superiority won the ball back and they scored from it. Had Gloucester had the option they would have taken the 22 drop and cleared their lines. I think that having that option call available would give a better balance to the game.

In closing this article, it’s often said that for the very casual supporter, the biggest barrier to enjoying rugby is understanding the laws. On that basis, I’d prefer to keep them as consistent as possible and not to tinker, thus allowing the migrating watcher to get a feel for the Laws without them being changed just as he or she begins to get a grasp!

It is after all a spectator sport, and as I have tried to stress, there’s not a lot wrong with the game as it is. Provided sides and refs both have a positive attitude and want to play rugby, I believe we’re in a very good place right at this moment in time.

Cheers for now,
Nige.

No Rest For the Wicked!

As I write this, I’m preparing for the climax of my domestic season, a massive game at the ever-wonderful, pressure cooker, Thomand Park, when the two giants of Irish Rugby, Munster and Leinster, meet in the Magners Final. The bulk of the Irish international side will be on view, the brilliance of the Leinster three quarters and the tough Munster forwards and experienced half backs like O’Gara.

Leinster are now the European Champions, a fact that’ll spur the Red Army of Munster on. They’ll certainly want to prove a point, and on the other side of the coin, Leinster will want to be the first side to do a Magners/HEC double (following in the footsteps of Toulouse, Tigers and Wasps, who have all done a domestic/HEC double).

Whilst all players need a rest, in the modern era it’s becoming very difficult to find a moment to re-charge your batteries. As soon as the Magners is finished, I have about a nano second’s respite before I’m straight back into action in the Churchill Cup at Franklin’s Gardens, which continues for me until 18th June, when I’ll officiate in one of the finals.

That gives me precisely 3 weeks before the Cwmtawe 7s on August 6th, and then the RWC warm up games start , where I’ll be running the line in the Ireland/France game, followed by holding the whistle in the Ireland/England game, and then immediately jetting out to NZ to join my IRB Referee colleagues for the biggest rugby tournament on Earth- the Rugby World Cup.

During this busy time, I have finally managed, for the first time since I became a full-time referee ten years ago, to grab a 2 week break in Spain, and I can tell you I’m really looking forward to it! That little rest period will be essential to me, just as it is for the players, before I have to deal with the huge pressures of a World Cup in a rugby-mad country like New Zealand.

One of the highlights of World Cups is spending time with my fellow professionals. We tend to travel, train and socialise together (it can be lonely otherwise), sharing experiences both on a professional and social level. I do enjoy the company of all my fellow professionals and it’s great to have such camaraderie and support from your colleagues.

Although this is a taxing time for me, I thrive upon it. It drives me to be better, fitter and mentally stronger. Just as with the players, a World Cup extends my game skills and I look forward to learning from my experiences, and above all, contributing to an attractive and exciting 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Speak soon,

Nige.

Hi all,

Well, as the season comes to a thrilling climax with the various finals and play-offs coming to a head, I wanted to talk to you a little about a question I am often asked- what sets apart the referees that can consistently perform under the pressure of the big occasion?

I think that, as with players, this is all about ability to deliver consistently. The major difference is having the capability to make the big calls when they need to be made and above all, maintaining refereeing quality.

Each ref I know deals with this differently. Just like a player, I’ll go through my videos and I’ll look at what I did well, what I could have done better, and look for any obvious mistakes I made. On that last point, please understand we all make mistakes and referees are human. The key is accepting learning from your mistakes and making sure they don’t happen again! I had a recent instance where I missed a call in a regional game- Scarlets v Ospreys- where I missed the forward pass and the Ospreys scored from it; now, whilst I can’t go in public to say anything due to my WRU responsibilities, I did talk to the team concerned-  Scarlets- and I apologized to the players and coaches  for it. The players and coaches said  ‘in fairness said don’t worry about it Nige, we all make mistakes..!’ As a result, I hope we thought more of each other afterwards and that I maintained the trust that is essential between players and officials.

I also believe that modern reffing is teamwork. I need a proper performance from my TJ’s and Video Officials. I will go out of my way to empower those guys, make them feel a team and to encourage them to be my second, third and fourth sets of eyes. It’s absolutely imperative to have high calibre individuals in those roles; people capable of taking on the reffing role if necessary, and people that are comfortable calling a decision in the same way that they would if actually refereeing the game.

One thing that is creeping into the game at all levels is the propensity for players to chat back to refs. And, guess what, the bigger the occasion, the more of this there is. I will only accept discussion from the skipper and pack leader, and I’ll clamp down hard on anyone else that chats back to me. There is no room for it in our wonderful game and I want to maintain the standards that sets us apart from other sports.

However, on the subject of backchat, I wanted to relate two little incidents that made me chuckle-

I was reffing a Walsh league game recently and pinged the flanker for breaking early (he was doing this time and time again). He responded “What do you think you are ref? A comedian?”

“Well, actually he is mate- have you seen his show on S4C?, replied his skipper!” (I regularly host Welsh language stand up comdey on TV!)

And, a couple of years back, when notorious back-chatter Lawrence Dallaglio was nearing the end of his career, Wasps played Gloucester at High Wycombe in the Premiership and a mate of mine was reffing. Lol killed the ball in the ruck for the umpteenth time that day and my reffing friend, frustrated, reached for the yellow card. “Number 8, killing the ball again, take ten minutes”, he told Dallaglio.

As a frowning, chuntering Lawrence left the field of play, a chap in the front row of the stand stood up and bellowed “’Ere ref, looks like you’ve got to referee on your own for the next ten minutes!”

Such a good sledge that the whole press box gave the guy a standing ovation!

Take care,
Nige.

Siwd Mae everyone!

Well another great season is drawing to a close, and I thought I’d like just to put my whistle down for a moment and reflect on some of the European issues from a Welsh perspective.

These games are truly the pinnacle of club rugby in the Northern hemisphere. The standard is amazing- often it’s as intense or even more intense than an international fixture, especially considering the likes of Ospreys and Toulouse have 20 or so full internationals to choose from, many of those being absolute world class performers. And also, its great to see the attendances- there’s been huge support for all the games this season and that is testimony that we, as a game, have the formula right, something I’ll touch on again later in this blog.

One of the highlights of my career was officiating at the Leinster/Munster semi final in 2009 at Croke Park, when a world record 83500 turned out for one of the biggest local derbies in sport. It was a massive occasion, one I was proud to be chosen to referee, and I’ll never forget the match (and I have to say the usual Dublin post-game hospitality!) I really hope there are more games like this in the future. The prospects of Stade v Racing Metro, Toulouse v Biarritz, Osprey’s v Blues…all are games to relish for the keen rugby watcher.

As someone that regards himself as a man who loves rugby first and a referee second, I always want success for the Welsh regions in the Heineken and Amlin Cups and it’s a bitter disappointment to me to see that there’s no Welsh sides left to contend the final. I really struggle to understand why this is and am very frustrated by it. If I look at the squads at both Ospreys and Cardiff this season, their strength in depth is huge and it’s a truism to say they both regions have totally underachieved. It really is puzzling, and I think both clubs need examine issues both on field and off field, as I am sure there’s something needs to be addressed. Paradoxically, both Dragons and Scarlets, have both shown improvement this season and have possibly outperformed their more illustrious rivals in terms of ongoing progression. Both of those clubs are setting their stall out with youth at the fore and this is starting to pay dividends, something I wholeheartedly support.

One small point on the regions- I do believe, that for the Magners to be more challenging and meaningful, that the top 8, regardless of nationality, should qualify. It’s farcical that a side near the bottom should get an assisted place as this will not breed strength in depth. I want to see a greater meritocracy. Whilst I don’t get much chance to watch much of the S15 rugby, I believe its weakness is the fact is is ring-fenced and there are too many meaningless games. This doesn’t happen in the British structures, and having an open competition and pyramid structure at both European, British and National level is imperative for progression and breeding strength in depth. By saying that, I truly would welcome seeing some of the S15 giants such as Crusaders or the Blue Bulls coming to visit the European hotbeds like Munster or Leicester. I really think there would be little to choose between the sides and the standard would be compelling in every way! Let’s hope one day someone can squeeze this sort of fixture in- the South African visits to Welford Road and Saracens last season were great occasions and underlined my thoughts about how competitive those clubs are, and I think the Springboks themselves would be the first to admit just how tough those games were.

Anyway, enough from me for now; I’ll be back next week to talk about the Laws again and look forward to catching you soon,

Cheers and take care,

Nige.

Siwd Mae!

I understand my colleagues on ruckingball are focusing on attacking line outs this week. Now, from a ref’s perspective, there is no such thing as an attacking line out, just a line out. So I thought getting some thinking down on how I approach refereeing the area would be quite useful, and in doing so, just clear up a few of the basic points of misinterpretation of the line out.

Firstly, I have to say, that since lifting has come in, the lineout has become one of the easiest areas to officiate, providing you set your stall out early and clearly, insist upon clean gaps, and obviate any form of skullduggary or contact in the air.

Setting those standards is key- consistent gap, straight lines, count the numbers and with any luck you’ll have a smooth platform for both fans and most importantly, the spectators, to create attacking rugby.

By saying that, there are a number of minor issues we have to get right-

• Not straight- easy enough to officiate, especially at my level where there is a touch judge to assist. As a ref look where the jumper takes the ball- if he’s over one side or the other the  chances are it’s not straight.
• Taking out in the air- this is very dangerous and I’ll clamp down hard on anyone who tries this- two areas to watch- the jumpers taking each others out, or the supporters driving underneath the opposition jumper to take his legs away. Both very dangerous and could be a yellow or a red if very severe.
• The start and end of the line out- the line out FORMS when two players for EITHER side assemble. At this moment, no quick throws are allowed. The line out BEGINS when it leaves the hookers fingers and it ENDS when either the ball leaves the catcher/taper’s finger, or the ball carriers leave the lineout with the ball, or if the carrier comes down and a ruck or maul forms, the hindmost foot of the last player in the ruck and maul moves beyond the line of touch or it goes over the 15m line. All not involved should be 10m behind the line out, i.e. the offside line.
• Long throws over the 15m line- note this is totally legal, but the line out is OVER when the ball crosses the 15m line, not when it is caught or it lands. It’s worth noting that as soon as it leaves the hookers fingers, the players out of the line (10m back, onside) can start their run to catch. A lot of international sides use this technique to defend their own line at 5m line outs, simply because their defenders have a 5m territorial advantage over the attackers, and it’s relatively easy to throw over the line out to be caught either by a back rower standing out or the defending centres.

So, that’s a little précis of what I’m looking for and what the areas are to watch out for. Again, I emphasise I want clean lineouts to get an attacking, flowing game for all concerned. Key to this is my point about laying the law down early and getting those gaps right.

Speak soon,

Diolch yn fawr,

Nige.

Reffing the Contact Area

My last piece featured one of the biggest bones of contention in the game- the scrummage, and this week I’m going to try and attempt to shed a little light on the other talking point- the contact area or ruck.

Now, before I start, I want to say to you that a great adage for all aspiring referees is ref the game as you would like to watch it! That means I want to enjoy the game, and if I’m enjoying it, the likelihood is it’s an attractive game to watch.

Taking that on board, the contact area is, for me and many others, the key to continuity. It’s the absolute make or break for fast flowing rugby, but also needs to be policed properly to create a contest. That means I want it competitive, clean and legal! I don’t want to see, as you don’t, defences ruling or to see cynical negativity, but I want a fair chance of the defence turning over the ball (after all, the best attacking moves often come from good turnover ball).

So my view is that I will penalise the ‘material offences’- and by that I mean the offence that materially has an impact on either defending or attacking. If it’s a marginal offside by one of the guarding pillars, if it has no impact I may shout for that player to retreat but in most cases, I’ll let it go as it does not have a material affect. However, if I see consistent infringement by the same player I may take a different view.

Looking at the ruck area, the main things I’m looking for is side entry, which disrupts the platform hugely and creates an unfair advantage, material use of hands in the ruck to win the ball, sealing off (going over the top to prevent the defence the chance to ruck for the ball) and any dirty play. This season, I want to see the tackler making every effort to roll away, even though I know this can be tough when three supporting players drive over the tackler quickly. I want to create that contest cleanly.

Factor in the speed that modern rucking takes place and you can see how difficult it is to get a balance. I don’t have a lovely cosy arm chair view like the TV watcher, or a bird’s eye view in the stand- I see things at ground level and have many different aspects to watch, even if only peripherally. Therefore getting this area right is a massive challenge for me and one I realise is one of my core responsibilities.

A couple of other things of note- I admit that I will go harder on offences in the red zone (defending 22). This is for a few reasons; firstly infringement in these areas really does ruin chances to score. Secondly, the cynical offence is more likely to take place in these areas as sides will throw everything in to prevent the try, even if it means taking a yellow to concede 3 points rather than 7. And lastly, people want to see tries deciding games, not penalties, and it’s my job to make sure there’s a canvass to paint the great moves upon. A great case in point was the Wales England game at Cardiff this season; Louis Deacon actually admitted after the game that’s he’d deliberately ‘copped one for the team’ and he knew that, with Wales having a 4 on one overlap, if he did not kill the ball illegally in the ruck, England would have conceded a try at a crucial moment. He instead chose to handle, got carded and Wales scored only 3 points instead of 7.

All in all, reffing the contact area is about balance- a balance of fair contest, ambition and positivity.

I really do hope I get it right and it’s something I’m highly conscious of. Let’s hope that we all, as refs, continue to do this and enjoy the speed and power of great contact rugby.

Cheers for now,

Nige.

Hi and welcome to Nigel’s blog!

After my piece on scrummaging last week, ironically last weekend I found myself reffing at Welsh premiership level, the standard just below the regions.

I really enjoy visiting the old ‘grass roots’ Welsh clubs- those that used to be the cream of our game- the Pontypridd’s, Bridgend’s and Pontypool’s, breeding grounds for Welsh rugby talent since the year dot! The crowds are good- at some ground as many as 3/4000 + and there’s a sense of pride and enjoyment that is very noticeable in these clubs.

Now, the laws of the game are the same at this level as they are at HEC, Magners and International level. The players are professional or semi-pro and virtually as fit and strong as at the elite level, yet one of the things that really struck me was the simplicity of the game, and how easy it was to ref the  scrummage area, and I found myself pondering exactly why, bearing in mind my point about the laws being identical?

There seemed to be a willingness to get the scrummages right and over quickly,. The contact area was a joy to ref; less skullduggery and a desire to get quick ball and use it. In short, the aim of their game seemed to be to use the ball, and not use the scrummage and ruck areas as anything else other than a means to an end.

I decided it was a combination of a couple of things. Firstly – pressure. Whilst there is obviously pressure at this level, the pressure seems to be to prove your rugby ability and to progress and improve. I think the guys on show want to wow the watchers with skill, pace and guile, which is hugely refreshing, rather than bludgeon a victory. This means the game is far more pleasing on the eye, and for me, as the man with the whistle, more enjoyable to referee. When fans criticize refs for being perhaps (in the fans’ eyes) overly pedantic at scrum time etc, they themselves forget that I too have a fundamental desire to officiate over an attractive game of rugby. I simply do not want to hear myself lecturing players over technical infringements such as scrum engagement or ruck conduct; I want the game to flow and for all involved to have fun watching, playing or officiating. Fun and enjoyment are the bedrocks of our great game and something I humbly aspire to try and make happen.

The second reason is the overall attitude from coaching and players. They believe that the best way of winning is an holistic method of just playing the game properly, not over analyzing to gain a 1% advantage in an obscure technical area. Maybe the top level game has become overly analytical and through that, too disjointed.

Certainly my feeling was players wanted to play, wanted to try things, and wanted to impress. I thoroughly enjoyed the day, and, for those who enjoy tips on stars of the future, I had the pleasure of reffing the young Welsh U20’s Outside Half, Matthew Morgan, who I genuinely believe will be one of the next great Welsh 10’s in the mould of Cliff, Barry and Jiffy before him. He’s a real talent, and, bearing in mind the points above, I feel that playing in the Welsh premiership rather than the regions is really assisting his attacking game and allowing him to hone those skills before the next big step up. I also wondered if he was playing in the regions right now, would he be prepared to play the same way or would the coaches be coaching his naturally intuitive style out of him? I don’t know the answer for sure, but I certainly have my suspicions.

Anyway, that’s about it for now. I’m on ’exchange’ duty this week, helping out in the Sarries/Bath clash and I’m looking forward to it.

Next week’s technical piece will be focusing on the ruck/contact area and what I believe are the key things in refereeing this facet of the game.

Look forward to speaking to you then,

Diolch yn fawr!

Nige.

Many people often ask, what is the hardest part of the game to referee? There are two areas that stand out in my mind – The contact area and the scrum. For now I will outline why the scrum is so difficult, together with suggestions I believe would help make it a less of a lottery to referee and a bit more pleasing on the eye that watching scrum after scrum collapsing.

The scrum has always been an important part of the game and quite rightly so, and I, for one, hope this will still be the same in years to come. But one thing is certain; we as officials, players and coaches have a duty to this wonderful game of ours to make sure that the scrum can still be a competitive and important part of the game whilst making it as safe as possible for all concerned. What makes it such a difficult area to referee is that at any given scrum there are a multitude of offences that should be penalized, therefore we as referees tend to make sure we deal with the most obvious and clear of them- ie the one that has ‘material affect’. Both teams will want to win the hit and get the upper hand on every scrum during the match, which is why we have so many free kicks for early engagements. Also we see a lot of collapses where the team that has lost the hit will often want the scrum re-set so they can try and win the hit next time. This is why it is very important for the referee to make sure that he does not let one side engage early and gain an unfair advantage.

 Another reason that can make it so difficult is that all six front row forwards can be of different shape and height, therefore making it very difficult for us to referee, as a short prop will want a small gap and a taller prop a bigger gap before they engage. Then when getting the distance correct and the engage sequence right, you have the binding of both props to deal with, and, after all that, make sure they scrummage legally after the ball has been put in by the scrum half, which, yes you’re right, should be down the middle of the tunnel.

Now watching the binding and actions of the props on the side of the scrum you’re standing as a referee is reasonably straight forward as long as you know what your looking for, but the problem often happens on the other side of the scrum where you cant see. At the elite end of the game we can have the ARs or touch-judges assist us, but when you don’t have neutral touch judges then your on your own and it becomes even more difficult!
               
A scrum that turns more than 90 degrees must be re-set and the side that was not in possession of the ball when it wheeled will put the ball in at the next scrum. Yes, you got it, common sense will tell you now that a side will willfully wheel the scrum in order to take advantage of this law. Wheeling the scrum is not illegal but it has to be wheeled correctly by one side of the scrum pushing and the other side just holding its position and not pulling back. The scrum then will gradually wheel which is fine and will give the side that has the ball time to play it. So in other words if they don’t manage to get the ball away then they deserve to lose possession of it. But the problem being here is that a side sometimes will illegally wheel the scrum by the front row pulling it round or the back five running it round quickly. This is not only illegal but dangerous and should be penalized.  Now, as you can see, there is a lot there for one man on his own to watch,  so now you are aware, just from the few basic things I have covered here, why refereeing the scrum is so difficult! I have not even covered the what other illegalities the front row can get up to in order to gain an advantage or to prevent a stronger and better prop in legally  winning the battle in the front row either!

There are no straight forward answers to why some scrum in some matches are just a total mess and take up so much playing time, but if we as referees  keep on working hard to improve our knowledge of the scrum and use zero tolerance in dealing with negative play and sin-bin players who don’t listen just as then the game will be better for it.  If the players take responsibility themselves and play within the laws of the game and some coaches encourage positive play rather than negative play at scrum time, then the scrum will  not only improve as a contest, but as a spectacle also, and then it can retain its rightful place as an integral and important part of the game. We all have a responsibility to do this and its about time we all started  doing so for the good of this wonderful game rugby football union.

I shall discuss the contact area next week, another referee’s den of iniquity!

Nigel Owens

No matter how much you prepare or think the six nations and its games will plan out it always throws up some surprises. OK maybe not as far as results have quite been yet , but certainly nearly. Italy nearly beating Ireland, Ireland nearly beating France although many would say that was not a surprise, Wales trouncing Scotland at Murray field and England beating Italy so well at Twickenham. There is something special about the six nations for all concerned with it. Players , coaches , officials and supporters. Every year I look forward to it, and every year and game brings its new and different challenges. This year I am refereeing Scotland v Ireland at Murrayfield , a fixture I have never refereed before , so one I am really looking forward to it. It should be a great occasion and hopefully a good game too.

Few weeks ago I  said I would tell you how a six nations weekend pans out for us referees. Well to start with the build up and thinking about the game will have already started a few weeks before, I have already started preparing and training specifically for it. I have 2 warm up games to build up for it Leinster v Airioni which I did  week last Thursday  and then Munster v Edinburgh on the Friday just gone. When refereeing in Europe we here in the Northern Hemisphere have to be in the country or city of the match the day before the game. This is to give yourself time to prepare of course but also incase there are any travel issues along the way which may delay you. The hotel will be booked and paid for by the host nation and the night before the game you are taken out for dinner with the other match officials by the referees liaison officer, who is usually a referee himself or an-ex referee  or referee manager from that country. One has to say that all of the countries look after you well, and we are very grateful for that too.

One other important thing we must do on the night before is also makes ourselves available to meet the coaches of both sides, [at a different time of course] this usually happens around 5/6pmish but sometimes the time varies depending on everyone’s preference and availability. Most coaches will want to meet you but not always all of them. The purpose of the meeting is just to give them an opportunity to clarify anything with you that may concern them , or ask how will you interoperate this if it happens.  One thing I make sure they don’t do is to bring any clips on the laptop about the opposition. Most meetings are very amicable and pleasant although now and again some can be quite difficult , but more about that when I finish refereeing !!!!! 

The following day then depending on what time k-off is of course I tend to have a wonder around the city and have a coffee and make it a relaxing morning and maybe an hour or so sleep in the afternoon then. Just before we leave the hotel which is normally about 2hours before k-off depending on how long we need to get to the ground, as I like to be at the ground about an hour and 30mins before , we the team of officials  will have a meeting just to lay out what I as the referee would like them to assist me with and to make sure we are all focused on our different jobs for the game. Some referees will ask for little input form the Ars [assistant referees] whilst others like me would like all the help they can offer, i.e. if I have missed something then I would like them to tell me about it, but they have to be clear and accurate with the input though, as an error can be costly for all concerned especially the team on the receiving end of it.

Just before the game then after checking the boots and talking to the front row which is a requirement by law I will start getting totally focused on the task ahead, and after doing the coin toss I will put my IPod on the docking station that I will have brought with me and listen to music. My taste of music is very unique ,I like all types of music so before a game you may well hear a welsh hymn blasting from my changing room to music from Cerys Mathews to Mumford and sons  take that, and even some of the old classics from the 60s. 

Then when k-off comes I will be ready for it relaxed but prepared for whatever challenges the game throws at me. After the match there is sometimes a dinner and speeches other times just a informal bite to eat and few quick speeches, I don’t mind either to be honest as its all part of the occasions and makes it such an enjoyable weekend , if the game goes well of course.  Like most things in life and in what very sporting role or field you perform in you need a bit of luck sometimes. This weekend will be no different. I am hoping the game goes well and the outcome is decided by the players and team on the field not by a controversial decision or mistake I make. So here we go its been a few months coming now this game, but its here now and no matter what the pressure to perform is, I am going to enjoy the moment. This is why I am here because I enjoy it this is what its all about  and I am going to give it my best and enjoy every minute of it.

Nigel

Well it was a big weekend of sport in Wales the weekend just gone. Wales v England Friday night at a packed out Millennium Stadium and an atmosphere as good as I have ever heard there, in fact I don’t remember the Welsh anthem being sung with so much pride and passion, and with a Nation  glued to their television sets in almost every home throughout this small but proud Principality, one had a feeling that something special may happen. Then on Sunday I went to watch my first ever live football match and what better one to go to watch than the big Welsh derby of bitter rivals Swansea City  against their big brother form the east Cardiff City, I sound a bit like Ben Foden now calling Wales the little brother !!!The atmosphere was electric at a packed out  Liberty in fact it was noisier at times than Friday night with the continuous singing and both sets of supporters taunting each others with songs and abuse. If this is what its like at football matches then I shall be going again for sure, even though a few supporters went to far at times and should have been thrown out well before the end.  

But one has to say in general most of the supporters were great and a credit to their clubs. Its just a shame than those ones who cannot behave don’t stay at home and watch it in their own living room were the genuine football supporters and the few like me who have never been before  don’t have to witness their childish and abusive  un-needed behavior.  Now although both were great occasions and in their own way good matches to watch especially Friday night if you were a neutral or an English supporter, but for a Swansea fan and Welshman both results were very disappointing to say the least. Taking nothing away form England I felt they were a better team on the night, but if Wales could have capitalized on the possession and opportunities they had then it could have been a very different result and the nation would have had a spring in its step for the weekend in fact for the coming weeks am sure.

What was very interesting though was the difference in the laws and rules of these two great pastimes. Rugby with its game for all shapes and sizes and its complex laws which can be interoperated many different ways , and football with its players all nearly the same body build and the only real  difference between them being the their individual height, with rules that are pretty straight forward and in most are pretty clear and easy to call with hardly any of the grey areas than sometime confuses the most knowledgeable rugby supporter and even player. I wish sometimes that rugby’s laws could be as simple and straight forward as soccer. 

Now don’t get me wrong I am far from saying that football is easy to referee, in fact far from it. For what soccer makes up by having simple rules, its officials deserve a medal for the pressure and back chat they receive from players and the management in the dug out, let alone the abuse and constant heckle form the noisy supporters. I for one am very glad that we as rugby officials don’t have to put up with the back chat and ranting and raving that our friends in the round ball game have to week in week out. Why they don’t bring in the 10 yard rule to football I will never understand, and if that 10 yards then takes you into your own box then it becomes a penalty. I can assure you one thing if Wayne Rooney  and  others were shouting and swearing at a referee and it lands him back 10 yards in his own penalty box and Man Utd concede a goal because of it, Sir Alex would not be very happy and am sure that would be the last time Rooney and his likes would ever be heard swearing on the pitch.

With fame and fortune comes a responsibility to all those who look up to you. Standards have to be set at the top end of the game not at the grass roots or in schools and colleges. Let the players and officials at very top of the professional game set the standards and everyone below will soon follow suit. I have often been asked should football referees be miked up like we are in rugby? Yes I think they should , not only would it be very interesting to hear what they have to say and how they manage and communicate  during the game, but also it would mean that the abuse of match officials by players and managers would be hear and that would bring it to an abrupt halt by the powers to be for sure. It was very interesting watching Allain Rolland and his counterpart at the Liberty officiate on the weekend. I thought the both were excellent in their own different ways, and managed the game superbly. It would have been interesting to hear how Mark Halsey communicated on Sunday, as he seemed to be a lot more aggressive in his communications skills that Allain was on Friday night.

I would love to have a go and refereeing a premiership match, and am sure that most of rugby’s top officials would do a great job on the soccer pitch as management of the players and the game is a vital and one of the most important parts of refereeing top flight rugby. Footballs rules are much easier to interoperate and the game I believe is much more straight forward to understand and learn than rugby. Would football referees be able to turn their hand to rugby ? Now I cant answer you that. They certainly have the skills to do so and the ability to cope with huge pressure situations. The only thing is how quick could they learn the laws of rugby and more importantly their interpretation. Ask me if I would swap refereeing rugby for football? Definitely not but that does not mean I would not give it a go.

Nigel Owens