Just watching Super League Backchat,Rod Studd has come up with a brilliant idea regarding video refs. He reckons a try scored by Castleford on Sunday wouldn't of been given if the video ref was there.So he reckons to help pay for the video ref at every game, each club pays 50 grand.

I really hope the RFL were not watching this,I reckon our new owners could be getting a bill for 700 grand to pay for video refs at every game

On the subject of VRs, in union the VR can rule in forward passes yet in league not? Why do they insist in saying this still?

It's an attempt to deter any passsing whatsoever in yawnion.

Admittedly it is moving more slowly in Union but surely if they can, then we can.

Probably to avoid risible farces like the "forward" pass try their VR absurdly ruled out at the weekend.

I don't think VR is ideal for forward passes, but if it shows the direction the hands are facing, or the fact the passer was stationary, therefore ruling out 'momentum', then maybe. It still wouldn't show the wind blowing it forward, of course, but if it's used as the servant and not totally deferred to as the master, it could have a place in the decision making.
There is also the problem that it might end up being used every 30 seconds.....

No need for it whatsoever. Virtually impossible to rule.

I don't agree. We could have a 'default' position of Not Forward, unless the video shows that it was definitely forward. To my mind, it would be easier than judging if a player was offside at a kick, where the player and the kicker are often not in the same frame.

It is almost impossible to show if most passes are definitely forward. All it will show is the ball ended up in front of the passer. It will end up like American football or yawnion with prolonged breaks in play every few minutes.

I don't think it should be used for every possible forward pass, just for those in a lead-up to a try. otherwise, matches at Headingley would last 3 hours.....!!





There are some pretty obvious ones that get missed by the on-field officials, and I'd love to be able to eradicate these. Mind you, video refs don't always get it right, do they Mr Ganson?

Some are easy to detect.
The HKR forward pass at Wigan was very easy to spot.
The soccer markings of the 6 yard area were there and the passer passed the ball outside the 6 yard area and the guy who caught it was well inside the six yard area.
Anywhere on the field where there is a line across the field of which there are plenty would be a good indicater if a pass is forward or not.

Forward passes are not judged in that way. It's all to do with the hands.

Argggggghhh why is it that the idea of a "forward pass" is still misunderstood by so many people. THE LINES ON THE PITCH CAN NOT BE USED TO DETERMINE IF A PASS IS FORWARD!
If a player is running forward quickly then the ball leaving his hands will always land in front of the place it was passed- momentum-it's a rule of physics not the RFL or stevo.

I hope you know more about religion than you do about physics or the rules of RL.
Type 'Rugby Union Forward Pass Video' into YouTube. Other video sharing sites are available.

You're wasting your breath. Some people will never get it.

How cum ref can judge if a kick has gon forward but knot a pass?

So basically what you are all saying is that a forward pass is actually not a forward pass anymore? So everything I was taught when playing rugby about the ball having to go backwards is actually not true?
It's like an episode of QI!

I think the rule needs amending to make players stop before passing the ball,
then we could go to the video ref for forward passes.

I don't get the love in with VRs one bit. Do we really need them?

I totally get that the momentum rule makes line markings invalid but I still don't see how having one view of the action at full speed is preferable to multiple angles slowed down if you want to see how the ball left the player's hands.

I'm not advocating an increase in the use of VR per se, but I've never understood this aspect

Long standing extract from Laws of the game:

" The direction of a pass is relative to the player making it and not to the actual path relative to the ground.

A player running towards his opponents’ goal line may throw the ball towards a colleague who is behind him but because of the thrower’s own [imomentum[/i the ball travels forward relative to the ground. This is not a forward pass as the thrower has not passed the ball forward in relation to himself.

This is particularly noticeable when a running player makes a high, lobbed pass. "

Hence why referees look to see that the ball comes out of the passing player's hands backwards - even if the ball subsequently travels forward relative to the ground.

(Good job Dutoni is no longer with us!)

the problem for me with slowing things down is the frame-flicking which makes all ball groundings look dubious - for example the saint "no try" v salford last thursday.

Whatever the arguments for/against forward passes, I hate the VR in general.

I hate watching my team on TV cause you can't celebrate scoring!! Each time your team puts the ball down over the line you've to hold your breath and wait 3 minutes to see if the VR can find any possible reason to turn it down.

I want to see teams scoring tries playing good rugby league (like on a sunday) not watching the back of two wally's heads as they painstakingly look for any reason to chalk tries off.

They should be at every game or no game, for fairness. Since they can't be, they shouldn't be.

The VR is over-used as it is. The last thing we need is more things referring up.

I think there should be a VR of Ganson & that other bloke poncing around with their knobs to make the decisions, just to ensure they give each referral exactly the same scrutiny. They are looking for any excuse to chalk of my teams tries.

The Forward pass Rule is very simple. Imagine the field was a graph of numbered whitewashed lines a foot apart. The groundkeeper would love that job!

If player A throws out a pass and releases the ball exactly on line 60 say, and the receiving player catches it either exactly on line 60 or behind it on line 59....no probs. Catch it on line 61, and it's a forward pass, clear as day. You say momentum....I say forward pass!

RL is a simple game, and amazingly, Stevo and the RFL's interpretation have it right. Of course, a proper winger should time his run nicely......