Latest news with #NigelOwens
Telegraph
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
My guide to the Lions Test referees
In 2009, World Rugby ripped up the history books and appointed British and Irish referees to officiate on a Lions tour. Not just any Lions tour; this was a tour to the rugby heartland of South Africa. And though Nigel Owens, Alain Rolland and I were not involved in the Test matches, we were involved in some of the full-blooded provincial games, as the Lions faced up against the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers. I was appointed to referee the Lions against the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein – having run touch in three other games – and it was one of the highlights of my career. Not only did I experience the sea of red shirts around the city in the days leading up to the match, but I saw the best players of the home nations take on the world champions in their own backyard. It was epic, and a huge honour to be the first Englishman to referee the Lions. There will be two other firsts on this Lions tour: Nika Amashukeli will become the first Georgian to referee the Lions and Andrea Piardi the first Italian. The trio will be completed by Ben O'Keeffe, who refereed the second Test in the last Lions series in 2021, a game played only a few days after Rassie Erasmus's 62-minute online rant about what he perceived to be refereeing inconsistencies. Amashukeli continues to make 'firsts'. Not only was he the first match official from Georgia to referee at a World Cup, but he was also the first to referee a Six Nations hame and a Champions Cup final. Piardi has been the go-to man over the past three seasons in the United Rugby Championship (URC) and refereed the final for the past three years. O'Keeffe burst on to the scene at the 2019 World Cup when he superbly refereed the final pool match of the tournament in the highly emotional Japan v Scotland game. At the 2023 Rugby World Cup he refereed the quarter-final between France and South Africa and the week afterwards he was in charge when England lost to South Africa in the semi-final in Paris. It's fair to say that they are a very experienced team, but like every Test match, the coaches will currently be analysing each referee to see if they can gain an advantage, or perhaps an insight, into how the officials may interpret the game. And if I know Joe Schmidt, he will be looking at some of the stats and noting that these three officials have some distinct differences. Emphasis will be on attack I have explained on these pages before that nothing sucks the life out of a stadium more than a promising attack being stopped by a referee's whistle for a technical side entry or a holding-on penalty given too quickly. Referees who reward the attack more tend to produce games with more continuity and fewer stoppages. Over the past two international seasons, O'Keeffe, who will referee the opening Test this weekend in Brisbane, has given almost 60 per cent of his penalties against the defence. This tendency was obvious when he refereed the Lions v Western Force in Perth on June 28. O'Keeffe gave only 16 penalties all match and, amazingly, none were against the attack. This could explain why Farrell opted for disruptors in the back row rather than an out-and-out jackler, putting Tom Curry ahead of Jac Morgan. Most pleasing for the spectators is that all three of the referees insist on quick ball when teams are attacking, and they all go hard against defending players who are lying on the wrong side. All three also have an average ruck-speed time of less than three seconds, a measurement of how quickly the ball comes away from the breakdown. This would suggest we are in for some attacking rugby. Lions should target scrum in first Test Amashukeli is not one for wasting time at the scrum. He resets only one in five scrums, and that is supported by being top of the scoreboard when it comes to having the highest ball in play. The Lions have used the scrum to devastating effect so far this tour, securing 18 penalties through the series. O'Keeffe averages five penalties at the scrum per game, and having witnessed the Aussies concede a couple against Fiji – a team without the power of Tadhg Furlong and Ellis Genge – I expect it is an area that the Lions will target. Worrying for the Lions is that Piardi, who will referee the second Test in Melbourne, resets more than one in three scrums. Which is often a sign that the referee does not give penalties to a dominant scrum. I imagine that John Fogarty, the Lions scrummaging coach, will be whispering into Piardi's ear this weekend as he runs up and down the touchline in front of the technical boxes. Best to call on TMO sparingly This week I was asked to join Scotty Stephenson, the Kiwi broadcaster and commentator, on his early-morning breakfast show. He was discussing the use of TMO after three potential New Zealand tries were scrubbed off in the van. I explained to him that technology improves sport – think Snicko in cricket or Hawk-Eye in tennis – but that it is so important that TMOs don't go looking at every pass or rewind every single breakdown. If they do, we will be waiting until September for this series to finish. At the end of the Lions' match against the Australia and New Zealand invitational side, I was scratching my head to understand what Shannon Frizell had done wrong for the TMO to come in, but after a lot of searching for the best angle, he was given a yellow card for a dangerous clean-out. TMOs are there to prevent the big howler – not to scrutinise every clear-out – and Amashukeli buys into that, averaging just over one review per match. Some readers will remember the Champions Cup final, with seven TMO interactions between the Georgian and the South African, Marius Jonker. They will work together again in the third Test, but I am hoping that the European final was just a blip in the figures. O'Keeffe will kick things off this weekend with his compatriot Richard Kelly in the van, and I'm hoping the number of TMO referrals is around fewer than two, O'Keeffe's average in each of his past nine matches. If it is, it will add to the flow of the game. My main hope, however, is that this is the last time you read the names Amashukeli, Piardi and O'Keeffe in these columns and they can reminisce on being part of Lions history for all the right reasons.
IOL News
16-07-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Nigel Owens says Springboks should have been penalised for illegal scrum tactic
Penalty Former referee Nigel Owens believes the Springboks' scrum tactic in last weekend's Test against Italy in Gqeberha should have been deemed illegal and against the spirit of the game. Photo: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP Image: Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP The Springboks broke the law with their scrum tactic in the second Test against Italy and should have been penalised, said former referee Nigel Owens. Rassie Erasmus and the Springboks created a stir with a number of contentious tactics in the second Test against the Italians in Gqeberha, which they won 45-0. Right off the bat, the Boks manufactured a scrum off the kick-off when André Esterhuizen went ahead of kicker Manie Libbok, resulting in a scrum being awarded for having a player in front of the kicker. Later in the match, the Boks came up with another tactic that saw Ruan Nortjé being lifted to secure a ball in the middle of the park. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading According to Owens, a penalty should have been given to Italy, while the lifting incident is open for interpretation. 'The key word is 'deliberate'. Normally, in this kind of situation, if a player is in front of the kick-off, it's deemed to be offside and a scrum is awarded. What we saw in this instance is that it looks deliberate. It's a ploy, an action to get a scrum. 'In this instance, if I was refereeing this game, that would have been a pretty straightforward, clear penalty because it's not the normal action of being slightly in front,' said the Welshman when talking to England great Ugo Monye on Whistle Watch on YouTube. On Nortjé being lifted in the middle of the field, again, Owens felt it was a grey issue that was open for interpretation. 'A player being lifted in the air to catch the ball from a kick-off is perfectly legal. We see it every game and nothing's wrong with it at all. Within the laws, this is not an illegal action. 'Is it against the sportsmanship of the game or is it an unfair advantage? If a guy is in the air, the defenders cannot do anything to compete for that ball. You can't touch the player or bind around those who are supporting him. The opposition pretty much have to wait for him to come down, then they can do something. 'It's a very clever ploy. Some like it, some think it's not right, but it all comes down to whether you think it's fair.' Owens went on to discuss Jasper Wiese's red card, which was shown to him after a supposed headbutt on an opponent. While many commentators in South Africa have felt it was a headbutt and the red card was a harsh sanction, Owens felt it was appropriate given the coming together of heads. Wiese has since been suspended for four matches following a World Rugby disciplinary hearing and will be available for selection again on September 13 when the Boks play the All Blacks in Wellington. IOL Sport Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Legendary international referee in attendance at Colchester Rugby Club
Milestone - Colchester Rugby Club has been celebrating its centenary year (Image: BEANSTALK MEDIA) COLCHESTER Rugby Club has been celebrating its centenary. A highlight so far was the club's Celebration Centenary Dinner which hosted the legendary international referee, Nigel Owens. Nigel spoke for 40 minutes and shared some of the great memories of his long career. Advertisement Colchester United discover Carabao Cup first-round opponents He finished off by bursting into song with his fine Welsh voice and signed many shirts and rugby balls for the guests. This memorable event was followed by a spectacular Golf Day at Stoke by Nayland Golf Club, to help celebrate the centenary. The event brought together players, supporters and partners of the club in a day of camaraderie, competition, and unrelenting sunshine, all set against the stunning backdrop of the club's lush, rolling greens. With clear skies and radiant sun, the hot conditions added a unique challenge to the day's proceedings, yet the enthusiasm of participants remained undeterred. Advertisement Team winners on the day were club kit partners, STC Ltd. Individual winner of the day was Paul Relf on 42 points, closely followed by ex-player Matt Waddling on 41 points. Straightest Drive, kindly sponsored by SRC, was won by Tony Byford, while Longest Drive, kindly sponsored by Oakheart, was won by Tom Burman. Nearest the Pin, kindly sponsored by Ilecs, was won by Peter Duley. The enthusiasm and support made this event a memorable celebration of the club's rich history and are looking forward to many more successes and milestones ahead. This weekend, Colchester are continuing their celebrations by holding a festival of rugby, with something for all age groups. All are welcome, whether you want to have a go at rugby or just observe - visit for more details.
Wales Online
31-05-2025
- Sport
- Wales Online
Bizarre schoolboy try leaves viewers at odds as Nigel Owens enters the debate
Bizarre schoolboy try leaves viewers at odds as Nigel Owens enters the debate The referee didn't see anything wrong with it, so Nigel Owens has provided clarity on the situation. This was the moment lock Finn Neal dotted down. (Image: Sky Sports NZ ) Welsh referee Nigel Owens has weighed in on the debate around a controversial schoolboy rugby try that is doing the rounds on social media. The try was scored by Marlborough Boys' College against rivals Nelson College, with Anru Erasmus simply kicking his penalty along the ground and towards the left side of the try line. From there, his team-mate Finn Neal surged after the ball and duly dotted down for a strange score. The Nelson players were still huddled under the posts when the trickery was produced. The try was awarded by the referee, who did not recognise any foul play. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. "It doesn't contravene any law that I can think of, so it's a try," he said. Commentator Jeff McTainsh branded the incident "the most bizarre try you'll ever see". However, Owens has now correctly pointed out that this play was indeed illegal. Commenting underneath the viral footage, Owens wrote: "No try. You must make a genuine attempt to kick at goal before the try can be allowed to stand. This clearly wasn't." The west Walian was then asked what the sanction would be in that scenario, confirming the penalty kick would be void and it would be a free-kick to Nelson. Watch the clip below. Content cannot be displayed without consent Debate has been in full flow on X, formerly Twitter. "Interesting debate .. tough decision to make, as this basically never comes up, therefore isn't coached. And the law isn't that clear. Feel for both Andrew and Nelson College here," wrote one. "Ball is in play, it's a try," commented another. Many others were quick to discount this argument though. Following the intervention of Owens, one viewer asked: "Would that decision change if the player did not tell the ref he was going for goal? "I know the presence of the tee suggests that he had done so but we don't see the ref signalling that a kick is to be taken." The explicit wording of the rulebook provides clarity on this. As per World Rugby: "If the team indicates to the referee the intention to kick at goal, they must kick at goal. Article continues below "The intention to kick can be communicated to the referee or signalled by the arrival of the kicking tee or sand, or when the player makes a mark on the ground." That try gave Marlborough a 15-5 lead going into the sheds for half-time, and they would go on to win the match 28-26, with the points from that try proving crucial in their victory.
1News
31-05-2025
- Sport
- 1News
Nigel Owens' verdict on controversial schoolboy try
A controversial try scored just before halftime in a South Island schoolboy rugby match has drawn global attention and a firm ruling from former international referee Nigel Owens. Marlborough Boys' College scored a 28-26 win over Nelson College, but it was a moment just before the break that has become the biggest talking point of the match. Lining up a penalty from right in front of the posts after informing the referee they were taking the kick, Marlborough centre Anru Erasmus instead nudged the ball towards the touchline to his teammate Finn Neal, who scored. The Nelson side were huddled under the posts expecting a straightforward penalty to be kicked. After a brief period of discussion with one of his assistants, the referee awarded the try. ADVERTISEMENT "He doesn't contravene any law that I can think of, so it's a try," he said. Commentator Jeff McTainsh called the incident "the most bizarre try you'll ever see". In a post to X, the Welsh ex-international referee Owens looked into the legality of the try. "No try. You must make a genuine attempt to kick at goal before the try can be allowed to stand. This clearly wasn't," the 53-year-old said, adding that the play should have been brought back. "PK void scrum." World Rugby Law 8.20 said: "If the team indicates to the referee the intention to kick at goal, they must kick at goal. The intention to kick can be communicated to the referee or signalled by the arrival of the kicking tee or sand, or when the player makes a mark on the ground." ADVERTISEMENT The moment has caused plenty of discussion, with the UK's Daily Telegraph and Planet Rugby covering the try.
