Ref was right to bring in TMO and deny score
WITHOUT video replay technology, I’m sure England’s Sam Underhill would have been awarded a second-half try that would have beaten New Zealand.
But Frenchman Jerome Garces followed procedure and made the correct call in judging Courtney Lawes offside when he moved to charge down TJ Perenara’s kick and set up Underhill’s run to the line.
The key factors are where Lawes is standing — he has to be behind the back foot of the ruck on the England side — and then when the ball is ‘active’ and he makes his move towards the scrum half.
If they didn’t have the facilities available, he probably wouldn’t have been given offside.
It’s one of the decisions you have to make off the cuff and unless you’re absolutely convinced it’s offside you don’t give it. It was a very tight call. But the way the game is set up now he [Garces] followed the correct procedure by letting the play go, letting Underhill touch down and then having a look at it.
Some people think that scrumhalves are overly protected but all players know they are running that risk when they try to get to them.
In olden days it used to be that the ball is active when the scrumhalf touches the ball but now it’s when he lifts the ball, and given the technology available you can see why the decision was reached after they’d looked at it.
Garces is a potential World Cup final referee — he’s rated in absolutely the top echelon, very popular with players and a great communicator.