Kiwis find a new villain in French referee Raynal
Inconsistent rulings take power and edge out of Crusaders’ scrum.
STEP aside Wayne Barnes.
Make room in that special corner of Kiwi hearts reserved for you after 2007 and the World Cup quarter-final in Cardiff.
A French referee called Mathieu Raynal was on fire in Christchurch last night.
We discovered he doesn’t appear to recognise the difference between a scrum being overpowered and a scrum being illegally turned.
The stunning season the Crusaders have had to date was based first on their set pieces. Raynal was responsible for taking the scrum card out of their hand.
Five minutes from halftime he allowed Lions’ captain Alun Wyn Jones to pull down a promising Crusaders’ maul near their line. At the least it was a penalty. It wasn’t far off being a yellow card. Raynal ignored it.
Owen Farrell had a chance to advance the lead to 12-3 three minutes into the second half. Thirty seconds earlier there should have been a penalty to the Crusaders when a Lions’ forward illegally kicked the ball through.
Liam Williams knocked the ball forward three metres, in a move that went close to being a try for Anthony Watson and it took the television match official to point that out to Raynal.
Not that all the early problems were posed by strange refereeing. This was the worst game the Crusaders have played all season.
Did the Lions deserve to win? Yes, they did. Absolutely no question about that.
Did they win ugly? It depends on which part of the world you’re looking from.
The Barmy Army would have loved the fact they won in the time honoured northern way. No tries but a swag of penalty goals.
To New Zealand eyes, used to the way the All Blacks, and our super rugby teams play, it was a trip back in time to the black and white newsreels of our rugby in the 1950s, when an All Black, Ross Brown, could play 80 minute of rugby in a test with South Africa, and only touch the ball two or three times. And he was the firstfive!
You yearned for some flashes of the counter attacking brilliance an on-song Crusaders’ side can provide. Instead they were jittery at the start, and never really found their groove at any time.
Pressure in sport can be a cruel, weird beast. Ask Greg Norman. Double check with Dean Barker.
You couldn’t blame Raynal for the lineout woes. Or for the trouble they had trying to clean up their kickoff reception. You might have applauded the Crusaders for looking to start the point of attack from the back of the lineout but it not only looked risky from the start, it proved to be a real problem.
The most enjoyable part of the Crusaders’ game this year has been their counter-attacking, with PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES men like Israel Dagg, George Bridge, and David Havili not only elusive, but also accurate, in their passing, and in the air.
Last night? Players who never spill the ball were dropping it. And the way the Lions play, which largely, we now see after Eden Park and last night, is based on kick and chase calls for complete competence, if you’re to deal with it.
Of the many Lions who played extremely well, the key man was Connor Murray, the Irish halfback, whose kicking at the base of breakdowns and scrums was absolutely superb.
Before the tour started Sean Fitzpatrick suggested Murray would be one of the most vital players in the Lions’ squad and, if he continues this form, he certainly will be.
Not far behind him was Owen Farrell. Farrell, we already knew, is a superb place kicker but he was just as impressive in how he controlled the game.
The Lions looked terrible in Whangarei, better but shaky in Auckland but now shape as genuine challengers. The test series looks infinitely more interesting.