Referalls

[BC54 VFC]

Can someone please correct the spelling in the thread title, it's really annoying me every time I see it. Sorry, Dave.

[tomd2103]

I watch a lot more rugby these days than I used to because it is free in BT Sport. That is a great game creaking under the overload of video replays and a law book the size and complexity of War and Peace.  Last week Brown of Quins scored a great, brave try that put his side back in terms in a game they lost. The French referee gave the try then bottled it and called for a video replay. It revealed after several minutes a tiny knock on of an inch or two off the forearm of a Quins player on the ground. The referee changed the call and spent much if the rest of the game apologising to the Quins players. It turned the game, it spoiled the game. It is just what we don't want in football.
I can wait for the whole game to be robotized.

Agree Brian.  The problem is in rugby and cricket is that officials have become overreliant on technology and now refer to it as they know that any little mistake will be highlighted and scrutinised. 

The enhanced coverage of sport has caused this problem.  People sat at home in and in the studio are able to see incidents at a variety of speeds and angles not available to on field officials.  It annoys me when I hear pundits and managers being overly critical of officials after having the benefit of seeing an incident numerous times.

[SoccerHQ]

I'd like to see a referee as pundit to get their take on refereeing decisions.

BT did that with....Mark Halsey.

So anyone opponent taking a quick free kick while he was getting Henry's autograph is fair enough.

As an aside I had a quick flick through his book in Waterstones the other day. Obviously I'm happy he's beaten Cancer but it was amusing reading one of the chapters on his last season as ref and some of the decisions he got wrong "And this player dived and I wrongly gave the penalty....against Aston Villa. I also have another incorrect penalty for diving a few months later....also against Aston Villa."