Weekend rugby roundup

Tuesday, 20 January 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Navy drown Sharks Those who made it to Welisara to watch the Navy-Sharks game were treated to a try fiesta and one wondered if Navy was playing a junior schoolboy team. The carnage was pathetic to watch from a rugby purist’s point of view and the question will be asked if there should be a lesser number of quality teams as opposed to a plethora to make up the numbers. I would prefer to see a lower number of quality teams that provide the spectator with value for money and a better quality game. The Sharks were simply outclassed, outplayed and sunk in the shallow waters of Welisara. They put up nothing that came close to resembling a fight but simply went through the motions of playing rugby. As to whether the recent results of 8 January had a bearing on this performance will be a point of speculation. The next carnage over the weekend came in the form of the South African A.B. De Villiers who took the Windies apart in their ODI game. It will be a tough assignment for the TV producers to get a highlights package going as the entire innings would qualify for the same.

Army outsmarts CR CR took on Army at Longdon Place and appeared to have the game sewn up till the last quarter. Army, as indicated before, has the uncanny ability to turn the tables when least expected and on other occasions play some unimaginative rugby. In the first round against CR they lost the game in the last quarter having led for most parts of the game. Last weekend the roles were reversed. Having trailed CR for most of the game they saved their best for last and CR had no answer to the late onslaught. CR’s downfall this season has been their inconsistency and this game was no exception. Next week they take on traditional rivals Havies and they could be a totally different kettle of fish. Havies in lacklustre win Much was expected from the Havies in their match against the Police. The fluency of the Havies three quarter line was absent and they made a fair meal of things. Their forwards were very slow and lethargic, maybe indicative of excessive Christmas pudding during the holiday season. They virtually walked from one set piece to another and showed no urgency to get to the breakdown point at speed. They were indeed lucky that Police did not capitalise on such poor play and were virtually let off the hook on many occasions by poor handling by Police. In fact both teams were guilty of poor ball handling skills, with dropped passes and forward passes taking the limelight in a lacklustre performance. The Havies expat number 8 had a poor game and his positional play was weak. There appeared to be greater fluency amongst the forwards after he was substituted and it is difficult to comprehend the decision to have him in the starting line-up. The lone shining star was the Havies skipper with his ability to win turnover ball, break the first line of defence and ensure that he tackled bigger opponents to a standstill. With little support from his fellow forwards, he was often isolated after making a break and he fights a lone battle in every match. Police did not look like scoring during the entire match and the time that they did was courtesy of a quick tap and working the three quarter line to perfection with the overlap. They are great spoilers and are willing to go hard into contact although they tend to lose the ball on contact. Police had a lot of support at the venue and there were a number of former players barking out instructions from the sidelines on what should be done next. This at times could be confusing to the players as they are then subject to the voice of two masters. Refereeing bloopers Refereeing a rugby game never has and never will be an easy task. The expectations of the players, the coaching staff and the spectators have increased over the years and they expect very single infringement to be spotted by the referee. It is quite an easy job to be seated in an armchair and pontificate (no pun intended on the recent visit by the Holy Father), as opposed to being in charge of the whistle and keeping pace with the game. In the Havies-Police game, the referee came off second best and both teams will feel that the referee mucked up critical game situations. The advantage rule was not interpreted well and we only heard the whistle being blown just when there was a chance to gain territory. This form of rigid refereeing does not facilitate an open game of rugby but only results in several stoppages of play and frequent resets of the set pieces. Infringements in the ruck and the set pieces are by the very nature of the same quite difficult to adjudicate, as what is visible to a section of the spectators may not necessarily be visible to the referee in his current position. That’s when the role of the two assistant referees comes into reckoning as they must act as an extra set of eyes for the on-field referee. Alas their input, if any, was conspicuous by its absence. (The writer can be reached via [email protected].)

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