Cameras ensure foul play is picked up in professional games – what about community rugby?

Opinion – It’s right and proper that Highlanders player Sam Gilbert was suspended for the remainder of the Super Rugby Pacific season.

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You can’t go spearing opponents head-first into the ground, as Gilbert did to Waratahs flanker Michael Hooper in Dunedin on Sunday.

Gilbert was red-carded for the act, but only after television replays showed the severity of the incident. Watching live, Sky TV’s expert commentator Justin Marshall had suggested Hooper “milked” it, in the hope of making things look worse than they were.

The right decision, both on the field and then at the judicial hearing that saw Gilbert get a five-week ban, was reached and no-one can have any complaints.

Player safety is an increasing issue in rugby and, thanks to the existence of the Television Match Official, appropriate action was taken in this instance.

And that’s comforting for Super Rugby players and their families. Cameras ensure foul play is picked up and perpetrators punished accordingly.

Only we don’t have that luxury in community rugby and that’s where I’d argue we need deterrents most.

I was at a children’s match on Saturday. I won’t mention names or venues, just that it’s a grade for Year 8 players, with the odd Year 7 who exceeds the weight limit, to play with their peers.

This was what they call an open grade, meaning no weight restrictions, and it’s not uncommon for there to be a 40 or 50kg disparity between players.

A boy was spear-tackled in last Saturday’s match. I’m no sook, but I was horrified.

While the tackler celebrated his “achievement” the tackled player was in tears. Not only was he hurt, he was terrified. As were his team mates.

A penalty was awarded, but that was it. No sin bin, no sending off, just a penalty.

And, if I had been the referee (who I should add was a coach) I can’t say I wouldn’t have come to the same conclusion.

It all happened quickly and you couldn’t say exactly which part of the tackled player’s body hit the turf first. The player was lifted and he was driven into the ground but, without the aid of television replays, there was an element of uncertainty.

To me, it was still an absolute red card, but which grassroots referee has the gumption to decide that?

This is the issue for me. It’s fine for administrators to talk about player welfare at the professional level, but what protections are there for those in the community game?

If I had been the referee – and I’ve done my fair share of that – I would’ve been frightened to send a kid off. Frightened of his reaction, frightened of his parents and club supporters and frightened of how spiteful the match might become in the aftermath.

It’s all very well for professional referees, with the aid of multiple camera angles to send players off, but good luck imparting that sense of confidence and authority upon community coaches.

Rugby is rough. At Year 8, players aren’t just being tackled anymore, they’re being wounded with intent. Most of it’s entirely legal, but it takes a brave referee to make the right call when it’s not.

I read and hear continual complaints about all the red and yellow cards in Super Rugby Pacific. That referees are pedantic and that the game’s going soft.

We rucked, once upon a time. We spent hours practicing it.

Players became human treadmills, as opponents (legally) ran up and down their arms, legs and back.

That stuff doesn’t pass muster now and nor should it.

We haven’t quite got there with head-high and spear tackles. We’re still wittering on about intent and wrapping motions and first points of contact.

We seek to excuse contact with the head, or find mitigating factors, because we believe sin bins and send offs spoil the spectacle.

Well, there won’t be any spectacle if we don’t end this madness now.

I have become an anxious watcher of age-group rugby. Anxious because children are getting hurt, tackles are too vigorous and protocols aren’t in place to adequately protect everyone.

For as long as we continue to celebrate big hits and venerate big hitters in the professional ranks, then we encourage children to do the same. Children who don’t have doctors and medical staff on hand, nor qualified referees.

When no one is actually in charge, as is the case with a lot of community rugby, mob rule applies. Good luck sending someone off for foul play in that environment.

So well done to administrators for attempting to tidy up professional rugby. It’s well overdue.

But there won’t actually be any professional footy if we don’t start looking after people better at grassroots level and empowering referees to make unpopular decisions.

The real focus of governing bodies’ attention should be here, creating confidence in children to play and comfort among parents that their kids will be looked after.

I certainly know parents who’ll sleep better when their child gives the game away.