Richards hits out at ‘preconceptions’ of officials as Leicester see off Newcastle
Leicester 26 Newcastle 12
When you are on a three-match losing run such as Newcastle’s, a trip to Welford Road would not be top of the most-wanted list of fixtures. But travelling to Leicester without the rub of the green from the officials makes an uphill challenge seem almost vertical.
That was the case yesterday as the Falcons’ director of rugby, Dean Richards, watched his side concede 17 penalties in the loss at his former stomping ground.
“The players came in at half-time and said there must have been a preconception about the refereeing of the scrums and of us in that first half,” Richards said. “Today the preconception was there and we cannot understand why. We are not sure if a meeting has taken place. Either the referee has come with a preconceived idea or somebody planted a seed – certainly from a scrummage point of view.”
Richards felt rightly, too, that a first-half clear-out by Leicester No 8 Jasper Wiese on Jon Welsh, which left the Newcastle prop with a dislocated shoulder, warranted further scrutiny. Both referee Karl Dickson and his TMO acknowledged the incident and deemed Wiese’s entry to be illegal, but concluded that no retrospective action was needed because there was no foul play.
“We will be seeking clarity on whether that would be construed as foul play,” Richards added.
Leicester, too, might desire some clarification on a blow to the head of full-back Freddie Steward by Newcastle lock Sean Robinson, which looked to warrant at least a yellow card but was missed by the officials.
This match was full of bark but not much bite. Although it threatened to spill over before even starting, with props Ellis Genge and Welsh squaring up in the warm-ups, it never came close to boiling point despite the officiating controversies.
In front of Eddie Jones, Leicester stuttered to a third win in four, with one early try from flanker Hanro Liebenberg and a late score from replacement Charlie Clare proving too much for Newcastle, whose fightback gave them hope of a losing bonus point that never came.
The contest was all but finished by half-time. Fly-half George Ford, who scored 16 of Leicester’s points on his return from England duty, added three penalties to Liebenberg’s early drive and a late yellow card to lock Darren Barry meant the Falcons’ attempts to overturn a 16-point deficit began with 14 men.
The Falcons managed two tries, through flanker Will Welch and replacement scrum-half Sam Stuart, to outscore the hosts – who had Wiese and replacement George Martin sent to the bin – 12-10 in the second half, but the damage done in the first 40 minutes was fatal.
The good news for Newcastle is that their next chance to arrest their league slide will be at home. The bad news is that the opposition will be the leaders, Bristol. They might need the officialdom rub of the green that day, for sure.