Wynne Gray: Rule tweaks needed to stop stagnation

No doubt the IRB assessors will give referee Nigel Owens a pass mark as they talk about the troubles in controlling intense tests, writes Wynne Gray. Photo / Getty Images

Rugby's rulers must lift the freeze on rule changes before the World Cup.

They would be tweaks to the system but major advances for a game which is stagnating in minutiae.

The IRB can dismiss pleas for changes from south of the equator as fluff but at Twickenham yesterday, the evidence was plain. If some of the calls conjured up between referee Nigel Owens, his assistants and the TMO are repeated in World Cup games, the blood-letting seen after previous tournaments will look like a church knitting group discussion.

All Black coach Steve Hansen kept his thoughts in check for a global television audience, preferring to talk through the decisions later with the match officials.

However, his frustration must be immense. While the players looked confused, the clock continued to tick and eat into playing time. Time is wasted in lumps particularly at scrums as it was when the rain started at Twickenham.

The muddle was not helped by referee Owens who could have sin-binned himself as he flip-flopped in his consultation with the TMO and then with his instructions. Forget a rash of debatable general play decisions like penalising Dylan Hartley for a legitimate charge. Those were major items with other general play inquiries likely to complete a sizeable dossier. No doubt the IRB assessors will give Owens a pass mark as they talk about the troubles in controlling intense tests.

Enough top-grade coaches have mentioned consistently how those issues are plaguing all grades of the sport. But change, or even an ability to contemplate it, is slower than glacial progress.

There have been sensible advances like concussion checks and video referee help but the laws and as a consequence, the judgments asked of and made by officials are still blurred.

The IRB has wisely allowed match officials to check for foul play and whether legitimate tries have been scored. If there is any doubt they can summon help from the fourth official.

In this highly technical age, where we can track fish at amazing depths or talk to parachutists in the stratosphere there has to be a way for the referees to talk without the roaring interference of 82,223 spectators who turned up to Twickenham.

Slap some high-tech noise cancelling headphones on the ref, open up a special referees channel without any TV prying and let them relay their decision to the crowd.

Something, anything, to improve the system: with the clock on pause.

Rugby can be grindingly slow and that attrition is an intimate part of its attraction as everyone deals with scoreboard pressure and time on the clock. We like the churning stress and the demanding set-pieces but not when injury, uniform malfunctions, leadership inquiries or scrum resets are eating into precious playing time.