Change guidelines to weed out ‘cheats'

I’m not going to do a Rassie and make a 60minute video nasty slagging off a specific referee but before the Lions tour disappears in our rear view mirror there are a few little refereeing items that need addressing under ‘any other business’.

- BRENDAN GALLAGHER

First can we, for the last time this summer I promise, quickly discuss waterboys in general and not just Rassie’s bastardisation of the job?

The World Rugby guidelines on ‘additional persons’ state that they may enter the ‘field of play without the referee’s permission during a stoppage in play for injury to a player or when a try has been scored’.

That clearly needs reworking. All the players start the game well hydrated and even at the height of last summer when we came out of the first lockdown there was just 90 second water breaks on 20 and 60 minutes. That worked well, why not stick to that and keep the gilet jaune waterboys and girls off the park as much as possible?

It also states that ‘appropriate trained and accredited first aid staff can enter the field of play at any time to attend to an injured player’.

So a few thoughts come to mind on that one. There is no mention of medics being allowed to hang around in the in-goal area – very much in play – five metres behind the most important scrum of the game three minutes from time when the Lions were looking to force a possible series winning try. As was the case last Saturday.

The miked-up Boks medic wasn’t treating anybody and play had very much recommenced but nonetheless she still appeared to be bellowing instructions to the Boks forwards, relayed no doubt by the coaches in the stands.

And then, when the scrum started to develop, came her screaming appeals for a penalty to the referee, followed by celebrations before issuing more instructions to the jubilant Boks forwards. It’s hard to fathom how rugby has got to the point where this is allowed. Get off the bloody pitch!