Wales hoping for controversy-free win

The last time Wales met France, a red card for Wales’s inspirational captain Sam Warburton defined the team’s brave but ultimately unfruitful World Cup run.

Tomorrow’s referee, Craig Joubert, also courted controversy when his officiating of the final attracted criticism from the defeated French side as well as many neutrals.

And there will be a degree of apprehension before tomorrow’s game because of the significant role played by the officials so far in this year’s event.

Wales’s opening weekend win in Dublin – pipping the Irish 23-21 thanks to a last-gasp Leigh Halfpenny penalty – was overshadowed by two so-called “tip-tackling” incidents.

Halfpenny’s winning kick came after referee Wayne Barnes judged, perhaps harshly, Ireland’s Stephen Ferris to have lifted Ian Evans dangerously.

But Ferris’s sin-binning meant he received the exact same punishment as Welshman Bradley Davies, who committed a far more dangerous offence earlier in the half.

Davies was spared a red card – though not the wrath of the subsequent citing committee – on the wrongful advice of Barnes’s touch judge and fellow Englishman Dave Pearson.

Compatriot and former World Cup whistleman Fred Howard told The Cardiffian after the match he thought Davies deserved red: “Pearson was very wrong in recommending a yellow card for the first [Davies’s] offence,” he said.

Wales’s home win over Scotland was less shrouded in controversy, although Frenchman Romain Poite looked to have made an error in disallowing a Scottish score for an apparent knock-on.

But when Wales secured the Triple Crown thanks to a 19-12 triumph over England at Twickenham, it sparked a huge debate over whether David Strettle had touched down for what could have been an equalising try with the last play of the game.

Strettle later insisted he had grounded the ball despite the attentions of Wales’s George North, Jonathan Davies and Halfpenny. But television match official Iain Ramage decided the play was inconclusive, allowing Wales escaped with the win – and the Triple Crown trophy.

Wales will point to Alain Rolland’s dismissal of Warburton as proof Wales have not always benefited from controversial decisions.

But both sides will be hoping Mr Joubert plays a low-key role in the sides’ Six Nations finale and the game is not won or lost thanks to the interpretation of the man in the middle.

Ex-official: Former referee: Davies and Ferris both deserved red

This is an article I wrote for The Cardiffian and my other blog, An Early Bath.

Former international referee Fred Howard has joined those who argue Wales’s Bradley Davies should have been sent off for dangerous play against Ireland on Sunday.

Second row Davies was yellow-carded late on by referee Wayne Barnes after a tip-tackle on opposite number Donnacha Ryan.

He will find out tomorrow how long a suspension he will receive for the dangerous tackle during the 23-21 victory when he attends a disciplinary hearing in London.

Also in attendance will be Ireland’s Stephen Ferris, who was sin-binned late on for a lifting tackle on Ian Evans. The subsequent penalty, which was converted by Leigh Halfpenny, was enough to secure the win for Wales.

Howard, who earned the nickname “Fearless Fred” for the frequency with which he was willing to discipline players on the field, said both Davies and Ferris deserved red in the eyes of the law.

Coach Warren Gatland admitted after the game Davies was fortunate not to have seen red.

But Howard said Ferris deserved a similar punishment. “Because of the directives referees are under both technically should have been red cards,” said the man who took charge of eight Wales games in his international career, which spanned eight years between 1984 and 1992.

Among those encounters was Wales’s 1987 World Cup third-place play-off victory over Australia.

Howard believes fellow Englishman Dave Pearson, who told referee Wayne Barnes to send Davies to the sin bin, was at fault. “I think Dave Pearson was very wrong in recommending a yellow card for the first [Davies’s] offence,” he said.

Howard, who officiated a total of 20 test matches, believes referees need to be given more leeway when making decisions surrounding tip tackles and lifting an opponent off his feet.

“The second one [Ferris’s] would have been a very harsh red card,” he said.

Welsh captain Sam Warburton was sent off during last year’s World Cup for a similar tackle on France’s Vincent Clerc and was handed a three-week suspension as a result.

The debate which greeted Warburton’s dismissal has been reignited by the Dublin encounter, and Howard says a referee must be able to judge each individual circumstance on its merits.

“The referee has got to be given some discretion, as they have with punches,” he said.

“I think if referees have reached that level they should be competent in differentiating between serious foul play and the second one [Ferris’s tackle] which was more of an afterthought.”

He added: “I think most referees would want to be given that discretion. I never liked being backed into a corner.”