British and Irish Lions want urgent talks with officials to clarify kicking laws after Crusaders and Highlanders controversy
Neil Jenkins, Warren Gatland’s assistant coach, is convinced the Lions have been wronged twice in their last two outings
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Your support makes all the difference.The British and Irish Lions will seek urgent talks with the new match officials that will take charge of their Test series against the All Blacks after twice being on the wrong end of refereeing calls surrounding penalty kicks.
Warren Gatland’s assistant coach, Neil Jenkins, confirmed on Wednesday that the Lions coaching team are convinced that Owen Farrell’s penalty against the Crusaders last weekend clearly went between the uprights, and that if there was any doubt from referee Mathieu Raynal and his assistant referees Angus Gardner and Pascal Gauzere, they should have consulted the television match official to review it.
That frustration quickly turned to anger during Tuesday’s 23-22 defeat by the Highlanders when Elliot Daly lined up a long-range 55-metre penalty to snatch the victory, only to be marched backwards by Gardner after asking the TMO where the penalty mark was. Gardner only took this course of action when the Highlanders’ blindside flanker, Gareth Evans, told the Australian that the mark was in the wrong place.
Ahead of this weekend’s crucial clash against the Maori All Blacks, Jenkins admitted that the Lions have been left frustrated by the calls of the departing triumvirate of officials, and will seek talks with their replacements, Jaco Peyper, Jerome Garces and Romain Poite ahead of the remainder of the tour.
Jenkins was also upset that, once Gardner moved the mark, the Lions were not given the option of reassessing if they wanted to kick for goal from 57 metres, or kick for touch and attempt to score a fourth try of the match.
“We did [argue our case] really, but it was pretty much a case of, ‘that’s what it is, we’re going back’,” Jenkins said on Wednesday. “The screen was on as well. In terms of where the mark was, he [Gardner] was probably right, but where he’s actually given it – that’s where we were taking the shot.
“I don’t know whether you [the referee] can change your mind and say, ‘I got it wrong’. If you do say that then I’d say we should have the option, so that if we want to play for touch, we can. But that wasn’t discussed, Elliot had a pop and it came up short.”
To say it came up short is an understatement. Daly’s kick fell agonisingly two metres short of the crossbar, about the same distance as Gardner had marched the replacement full-back backwards before allowing him to take the shot at goal. Farrell’s effort appeared to go directly over the right upright, and given there was very little in it, the TMO should have been consulted.
However, assistant referees Gardner and Gauzere looked at each other blankly and did not signal whether it had gone between the posts or not, leading to Raynal to signal for a 22m drop-out despite protestations from Farrell and Sean O’Brien falling short.
“It was over,” Jenkins insisted. “It was.
“We were in behind it and it was over. Look, it's incredibly hard to be a referee and a linesman. If you're standing underneath the posts you can't tell me if that's gone over or if it’s just crept in or not. It's quite difficult to see if you're standing quite literally [looking straight up], so you know, the referee has to take control there as well and if he's unsure then maybe you do go to the TMO.
“But both me and Owen felt the kick was certainly over. It just crept in but, you know, the decision’s made and that's how it is, you've just got to get on with it.
“I've had this scenario with Wales in the World Cup in 2011 against South Africa in Wellington. It was a similar type kick on half with James Hook. As far as we were concerned the kick went over. Gats asked me at half-time, I think Wayne [Barnes] was refereeing that day, and as we were coming in and Gats was talking to me, [South Africa centre] Francois Steyn had come off and he said 'Neil, the kick was over'.
“So I said 'Gats, there you are, Frans was standing behind the posts saying it was clearly over' and this was half-time in a massive World Cup game, a crucial game.
“At the end of the day we lost by a point so that kick mattered in hindsight, obviously.”
As a result, the Lions will seek to clarify that they can request a TMO review, as Evans did for the Highlanders, if a kick is deemed to be a close call, even though their protestations in Christchurch last Saturday went unanswered.
“Well we did ask him and he didn't want to know,” Jenkins said of complaining to Raynal. “I don't see an issue, if they feel like there's an issue, is it a try, you go to the TMO. For kickers if it's there or thereabouts I don't see why it would be an issue to go to the TMO. That's my view anyway.”
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