Nigel Yalden: Lifting all test refs to Owens' level would be brilliant call

Match Referee Nigel Owens. Photo / Greg Bowker

Opinion

The All Blacks have been involved in some pretty good test matches and some great games of rugby in the last 12 months.

Quickly let me clarify my opening sentence. My belief is that a great game of rugby doesn't automatically qualify as great test and vice versa; last week's encounter at Eden Park is a good example of the latter.

All Black matches that stand out from the previous 12 months include the entertaining Bledisloe Cup opener in Sydney and the equally invigorating third test of the transtasman series in Dunedin.

In the great tests category, I put the end-of-year tour clashes with England and Ireland while the Rugby Championship decider at Ellis Park is somewhere in the middle - my non-committal stance largely due to the fact the Boks needed an interminable four-try bonus point, skewing the dynamics of the match.

Besides the obvious All Blacks involvement, all the contests mentioned have another thing in common.

All were officiated by either Nigel Owens or Craig Joubert. Coincidence? Heck no.

The yawning gap between Owens and Joubert and the next tier of international referees is something the International Rugby Board should be greatly concerned with 15 months out from the Rugby World Cup.

Owens and Joubert are not perfect by any stretch - they will be the first to tell you they don't get every decision right every single time.

But the way they control the game, which is light years ahead of the others, means they tend to get more calls right than wrong and their matches seem to have a better feel about them.

Even during the hodge-podge moments of last week's test, and lord knows there were enough of them, Owens was trying to allow the game to flow, even though neither side took any advantage of it.

Both these refs have clear, authoritative tones on the field. Short, sharp explanations are the norm, generally only elaborating when talking or responding to queries from captains. Their interpretation of the rules is conducive to good rugby.

The sporting cliche is that if you don't notice the referee, they've had a good game.

Not anymore.

Officials will be recognised for a good outing as much as they will be for poor ones and in rugby's case Owens and Joubert are testament to this.

It is vital to the success of next year's World Cup that the IRB get that next tier of referees up to that same high standard.

Build-up to the with Veitch on Sport (midday-6pm) from Dunedin, followed by The Curtain Raiser (from 6pm). Live commentary with Nigel Yalden.