So, Jared Payne, the Ulster fullback, has been banned for two weeks for knocking Alex Goode out of the air like a clay pigeon. To continue the metaphor, Goode was then removed like a clay pigeon (i.e. carried off in a bucket) and Payne was shown a straight red card that has been causing much, much consternation on rugby forums up and down the land. Especially, it seems, if you happen to be an Ulsterman.
Opinion at the time was divided, it must be said, with Will Greenwood on Sky supporting the referee's decision and the other two (Irish) pundits maintaining it should have been yellow. Hmm. Meanwhile, RugbyDump's facebook page has gone literally mental with sage social-media users bemoaning the demise of the Gary Owen, the advent of diving in rugby and the mental state of the referee, among other things. I have yet to read a piece of serious journalism that says it shouldn't have been red, but then I've not looked at the papers from Ireland, give me an minute...
That didn't take long. Belfast Telegraph, anyone?
Ulster Rugby launch fight for justice over Jared Payne red card.
The point is, they would say that, wouldn't they? Further, their assertion that the decision caused consternation among 'the vast majority of supporters and neutrals alike' is simply not true, in my experience. I can only assume they haven't been asking the neutrals I've been keeping an eye on, or asking me. I'm neutral.
Anyway, I watched that game (Ulster should have won, in the end. One shudders at the size of the thumping Saracens would have been dealt if the Irishmen hadn't given them a fighting chance by having a bloke sent off) and will hereby chuck in my penny's worth, despite it being worth less than said proverbial penny, ironically. But it will give me something to do while I listen to the cricket (incidentally, if anyone fancies giving me a job and/or money, feel free to leave your contact details/bank account access information in the comments section). Also, as it turns out, the IRB have quite a nice website for those who wish to research the laws.
So, then: preliminaries. As far as I have been able to read, no one but no one is disputing the following:
Now, following the laws, that clearly constitutes a dangerous tackle, and we come to the severity of the punishment. As I said, no one (not even the good people of Ulster) are disputing the penalty but many are saying that it was a yellow, tops. I have to admit, my first inclination was 'yellow, borderline red'. You don't see a lot of red cards for tackles in the air, but then they are hardly ever that reckless. What the referee has to look at is HOW DANGEROUS the tackle was. Nothing else. Not the intent, or the extent of Goode's injury, but how dangerous the tackle was. Given the facts that Payne went into his legs with absolutely no thought of Goode's being there, the speed at which he did so and the fact that Goode went down head-first (regardless of any injury), this amounted to it being about as dangerous as a tackle in the air can possibly get, hence the red.
Thankfully, Goode was OK and rejoined his team mates on the bench. But it could have been much, much worse and remember: the laws that govern the Heineken Cup are the same laws that govern Sunday league matches between clubs you've never heard of. If you were allowed to do things like that without punishment, then sooner or later someone would end up losing the ability to walk. If Payne, the next time he chases a Gary Owen, sees the defender, slows down, then smashes him as he lands, then Mr Garces will have done rugby - and indeed Payne - a service. I understand Ulster feeling hard done by, but I think the Belfast Telegraph would actually find a lot of neutrals agree with the ref.
Options at 10?
In a totally unrelated note, Danny Cipriani has been named Premiership Player of the Month. Good for him. The lad's had a great season generally and comprehensively out-played George Ford when the two met down in Bath 2 weeks ago. Given Freddie Burns recent 'form' a trip to New Zealand surely beckons for Cipriani.
Opinion at the time was divided, it must be said, with Will Greenwood on Sky supporting the referee's decision and the other two (Irish) pundits maintaining it should have been yellow. Hmm. Meanwhile, RugbyDump's facebook page has gone literally mental with sage social-media users bemoaning the demise of the Gary Owen, the advent of diving in rugby and the mental state of the referee, among other things. I have yet to read a piece of serious journalism that says it shouldn't have been red, but then I've not looked at the papers from Ireland, give me an minute...
That didn't take long. Belfast Telegraph, anyone?
Ulster Rugby launch fight for justice over Jared Payne red card.
The point is, they would say that, wouldn't they? Further, their assertion that the decision caused consternation among 'the vast majority of supporters and neutrals alike' is simply not true, in my experience. I can only assume they haven't been asking the neutrals I've been keeping an eye on, or asking me. I'm neutral.
Anyway, I watched that game (Ulster should have won, in the end. One shudders at the size of the thumping Saracens would have been dealt if the Irishmen hadn't given them a fighting chance by having a bloke sent off) and will hereby chuck in my penny's worth, despite it being worth less than said proverbial penny, ironically. But it will give me something to do while I listen to the cricket (incidentally, if anyone fancies giving me a job and/or money, feel free to leave your contact details/bank account access information in the comments section). Also, as it turns out, the IRB have quite a nice website for those who wish to research the laws.
So, then: preliminaries. As far as I have been able to read, no one but no one is disputing the following:
- Jared Payne took Goode out in the air
- Goode went down on his head
- There was absolutely no intent or malice on the part of Payne, who had his eyes on the ball the whole time
- It was a stonewall penalty
We effectively have a guilty plea, m'lud, as it cannot be argued from any of the available evidence that Payne did NOT, in fact, take Goode out like that peeping Stark lad in the first episode of Game of Thrones. The case for the defence says that Payne is perfectly entitled to compete for the ball, and he clearly didn't mean to take out Goode like he did.
Here's the rub, because to my mind, that last point is in fact a case for the prosecution. Bear with me.
Payne is, indeed, perfectly entitled to compete for the ball. But it is also Payne's (and anyone else's) responsibility to ensure that he places no other player in danger while doing so. What made this dangerous, not only to Alex Goode but to Payne himself, was not bothering to look for a split second and see where the defenders were, then ploughing straight into someone's legs at full tilt. It's a bit like driving a tank through a building, then claiming you didn't see the building. What did he expect? How often do you NOT have to battle a defender to reclaim a Gary Owen? He should have known, as a professional rugby player, that there would be someone underneath the kick and it was his duty to make sure he didn't hurt them. That he couldn't be trusted to do that is, to my mind, the most damning thing about the whole incident.
Payne is, indeed, perfectly entitled to compete for the ball. But it is also Payne's (and anyone else's) responsibility to ensure that he places no other player in danger while doing so. What made this dangerous, not only to Alex Goode but to Payne himself, was not bothering to look for a split second and see where the defenders were, then ploughing straight into someone's legs at full tilt. It's a bit like driving a tank through a building, then claiming you didn't see the building. What did he expect? How often do you NOT have to battle a defender to reclaim a Gary Owen? He should have known, as a professional rugby player, that there would be someone underneath the kick and it was his duty to make sure he didn't hurt them. That he couldn't be trusted to do that is, to my mind, the most damning thing about the whole incident.
Now, following the laws, that clearly constitutes a dangerous tackle, and we come to the severity of the punishment. As I said, no one (not even the good people of Ulster) are disputing the penalty but many are saying that it was a yellow, tops. I have to admit, my first inclination was 'yellow, borderline red'. You don't see a lot of red cards for tackles in the air, but then they are hardly ever that reckless. What the referee has to look at is HOW DANGEROUS the tackle was. Nothing else. Not the intent, or the extent of Goode's injury, but how dangerous the tackle was. Given the facts that Payne went into his legs with absolutely no thought of Goode's being there, the speed at which he did so and the fact that Goode went down head-first (regardless of any injury), this amounted to it being about as dangerous as a tackle in the air can possibly get, hence the red.
Thankfully, Goode was OK and rejoined his team mates on the bench. But it could have been much, much worse and remember: the laws that govern the Heineken Cup are the same laws that govern Sunday league matches between clubs you've never heard of. If you were allowed to do things like that without punishment, then sooner or later someone would end up losing the ability to walk. If Payne, the next time he chases a Gary Owen, sees the defender, slows down, then smashes him as he lands, then Mr Garces will have done rugby - and indeed Payne - a service. I understand Ulster feeling hard done by, but I think the Belfast Telegraph would actually find a lot of neutrals agree with the ref.
Options at 10?
In a totally unrelated note, Danny Cipriani has been named Premiership Player of the Month. Good for him. The lad's had a great season generally and comprehensively out-played George Ford when the two met down in Bath 2 weeks ago. Given Freddie Burns recent 'form' a trip to New Zealand surely beckons for Cipriani.
