Retired South
African referee Jonathan Kaplan says the decision to award a last-gasp
penalty against the All Blacks in their loss to the Springboks sets a
dangerous precedent. First five-eighth Pat Lambie slotted a 78th-minute
penalty to hand the hosts a 27-25 win in Johannesburg on Saturday, after
All Blacks flanker Liam Messam committed a high tackle on opposite
Schalk Burger.
Kaplan, who whistled a world record 68 Tests, says the tackle deserved
to be penalised but he was concerned about how the incident came to the
attention of referee Wayne Barnes. Writing for the website
ratetheref.co.za, Kaplan noted Barnes and his assistant referees all
missed the tackle, which was then brought to their attention by
broadcasters who controlled what was shown by replay on the big screen
at Ellis Park.
"After finding the clip, and then replaying it over and over, eventually
the match officials decided it was worthy of review, and correctly
awarded a penalty to the Boks," Kaplan said. "I doubt [very much]
whether that clip would have been brought up on the screen by producers
in Aus or NZ and replayed over and over.
"Is it right that someone outside of the domain of the match officials
can affect the outcome of a major Test match? And how neutral is he?"
Kaplan had few concerns about other aspects of Barnes' game. He even
handed the Englishman praise for a surprisingly good rendition of
American singer Don McLean's Bye Bye Miss American Pie at a barbecue he
hosted earlier in the week.
"So much for those people who regularly say the Northern referees are not up to it!"
However, Kaplan wasn't as complimentary about Welsh referee Nigel Owens,
savaging his performance in the other Rugby Championship Test on
Saturday in Mendoza, where Argentina beat Australia 21-17
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