YOU BLEW IT
Scotland ref got it wrong admit his bosses
Referee Craig Joubert should not have awarded the late penalty that cost Scotland a famous quarter-final victory over Australia, admitted World Rugby last night.
Scotland lost 35-34 after Wallaby No 10 Bernard foley scored the 79th-minute penalty, but a post-match review confirmed Joubert made the wrong decision in the closing stages at Twickenham.
The 37-year-old has not been included in the match- official line-up for this weekend’s semi-finals.
The review found that Joubert incorrectly judged Scottish prop Jon Welsh to be offside when catching the ball, gifting foley the result-defining kick at goal.
Australia scrum-half Nick Phipps had intentionally played the ball before Welsh caught it — a moment missed by Joubert — rendering the penalty decision incorrect.
World Rugby confirmed Welsh was onside and Joubert should have awarded only a scrum to Australia for an earlier knock-on by flanker John Hardie.
IT’S official. Scotland were robbed of a place in the World Cup semifinals. After a thorough review, World Rugby have confirmed that Vern Cotter’s side were sunk by a penalty which should not have been awarded.
The governing body’s unprecedented public verdict on a referee’s performance has profound ramifications. Craig Joubert, the South African official in the eye of the storm, surely will not have any further involvement in this tournament and may wonder if he has any future in the game after his critical decision at Twickenham on Sunday was laid bare as an error with far-reaching consequences.
As for the Scots, whose heroism against Australia brought them to within a minute of an historic triumph, this is a sporting injustice from which they may never truly recover. Many of the players involved will not have another chance to feature in the last four of the global showpiece. They were within touching distance of reaching the semi-finals for the first time since 1991 before Joubert’ss error allowed Bernard Foley to kickck the last- minute penalty that gave Australia a 35-34 win.
Fingers have been pointed at Scotland’s line- out malfunction at the crucial moment, and at the TMO protocols which prevented a referral and a reprieve. These are valid points, but the stark fact is that the Wallabies should not have been given the shot at goal which allowed them to escape to victory.
When the ball bounced forward off Scottish flanker John Hardie, Australia scrum-half Nick Phipps tried to snatch it, so the contact with him meant Jon Welsh was not offside when he caught it. But, in the face of a mass Antipodean appeal for a penalty, that is the call Joubert made, one which his own employers have now conceded was incorrect.
The statement released by World Rugby last night reads: ‘On review of all available angles, it is clear that after the knock- on, the ball was touched by Australia’s Nick Phipps and… Law 11.3(c) should have been applied, putting Welsh onside. The appropriate decision, therefore, should have been a scrum to Australia for the original knock-on.’
Joel Jutge, World Rugby’s match official manager, said: ‘Despite this experience,experience Craig has been and remains a world-class referee.’
It was emphasised that he followed correct procedure by not referring the decision to the TMO, but that will do nothing to wash away the stain caused by this incident.
Speaking at a seminar in central London yesterday, World Rugby chief executive Brett Gosper said: ‘Joubert’s one of our finest referees; a good man. Mistakes are made by our referees across the tournament — that can happen. There’s a human element still.
‘There are highly paid professional rugby players out there making mistakes and dropping balls, but of course they don’t get as vilified as match officials do. It’s a very, very tough job.’
Former referee Jonathan Kaplan was sympathetic in assessing the key decision made by his compatriot, saying Joubert ‘had to make a decision in real time which was not an easy decision, even in slo-mo’. However, he added: ‘The only thing I would say is that generally referees are told to only blow for the clear and obvious and in this case there could have been doubt.’
There was still considerable doubt last night about what had prompted Joubert to dash from the field immediately after blowing the final whistle. Speaking to the BBC, former Scotland captain Gavin Hastings reiterated his anger at the referee’s swift exit, saying: ‘He sprinted off the field at the end of play like Usain Bolt — as though his life was under threat. That was unworthy of a game of that magnitude. It was unworthy of the game of rugby. I hope he doesn’t get another game of international rugby.’
Gosper quipped that the official may have ‘needed the bathroom’, but on a more serious note he added: ‘I don’t know what was in Craig’s mind. What I do know is that it was quite a hostile crowd. Maybe a match official senses that and is more on edge. He’s under huge pressure anyway.’
Perhaps predictably, Australia coach Michael Cheika spoke up in support of Joubert and rounded on those such as Hastings who have criticised his hasty departure. Noting that a plastic water bottle was thrown at the fleeing referee, he said: ‘I don’t like the fact that people are making something of the fact that he ran off.
‘Someone threw a bottle at him. I don’t think it’s at all funny. I’d be racing off too if I saw a bottle coming. He’s just a person like everyone else. Maybe he was worried about something. Maybe he had received a word in his ear from security.’