‘Rugby is stuck in time warp’

Jonathan Kaplan says rugby should have an on-field challenge system to correct referees' mistakes.

This follows an admission from Craig Joubert that he should not have penalised Richie McCaw at the end of the Super Rugby final, which allowed Bernard Foley to snatch victory for the Waratahs.

Jaco Peyper, meanwhile, told All Blacks coach Steve Hansen that he should not have given Wyatt Crockett a yellow card during the opening Rugby Championship match in Sydney, as the ball was out of the ruck, and was also wrong regarding several free kicks.

'You then have people coming out of the woodwork saying that captains need [an] on-field challenge to correct those type of human errors,' wrote Kaplan on ratetheref.co.za. 'Couldn’t agree more but we are stuck in a bureaucratic time warp. This should be happening already! This is professional sport. It is too reliant on one man's whims and the issues will never be resolved if administration think they can stick their heads in the ground and hope for the best. Never!'

When asked by SARugbymag.co.za if Sanzar would consider an on-field challenge system, CEO Greg Peters said: 'It has been considered by us and the IRB but we are in a period of a moratorium on law changes prior to the World Cup, TMO protocol included. It's possible [for it to be introduced] following that period although a challenge system is not universally supported.'

Human error doesn't cut it, says Mark Keohane

Photo: Matt King/Getty Images

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