Listened to Radio Manchester on the way back today and one of the issues raised was the standard of the refs, today was as bad as other weeks, they all seem really inconsistent where the same incident is penalised one week to be ignored the next.
Hicks to me just doesn't seem to be able to keep calm and just makes it up, couple of decisions today well say no more. Saints fan on regarding obrien shoulder chage stating that before it was banned several players got sent off, but now it's been banned no players have been sent off, every incident has been placed on report, why?

I can understand a certain element of different actiosn for the same offence week by week (dont necessarily agree, but do understand) as referees take on board feedback from their performances. What is frustrating is where the same offences are treated differently within the same game!!!

As for the reason for so many shoulder charged being put on report.....I can only suggest that the referees do not feel that they have been given sufficient guidance about the offence to make clear decisions on it. I wonder how many time the RFL have directly/indirectly undermined a ref by opting for a lenient sentence for the ref to then think "well if you aint going to back me, YOU make the call"

Hicks' positional viewing of the game is unbelievable. When we were 2 meters out from their line yesterday he was stood with his back to at least four Cas players who were in line with the play the ball. He looks like a startled rabbit most of the time.

One point that I feel really needs looking at is this issue when a ball is lost/ stolen in the tackle, I know the Aussies have two refs and in Gansons interview on Supermen he said we don't have enough officials to go down the two ref route, so there needs to be in my opinion a real effort to resolve this concern. Leeds attack the ball in the tackle, smith alluded to this in his post match interview after the Leeds game, Ratford yesterday in my opinion had the ball stolen and it resulted in a try so its not just costing field position it's costing points.
We tackle the ball with our three in the tackle and are probably as guilty as the other teams but that still doesn't make it right, this multiplied with the ref standards and its becoming a little bit of a lottery.

Standard tackle, taught at all levels from U8's up, is 1st in stops momentum, 2nd clamps ball, third brings man down ...... two eventual markers hold down until 3rd gets back and line is set. What goes on at the ruck whilst the line is set is never watched because the refs don't run backwards when getting the defensive line back the 10m and are relying on the absolutely useless TJ's to watch the ruck......... and lets face it, they can't even tell if a ball has gone between the uprights (anyone else at Cas think the score should've been 30-36?).

Ref turns 'round and sees the ball is loose, so decides what to do based on who's wound him up in the previous 10 minutes.... or in Hicks case, whoever is playing towards the Railway End gets the ball !

we scored a try off an outrageous forward pass, you scored a try from pretty clear obstruction (in that, if it was a Friday night game it'd have been chalked off)

I also think Hauraki's try was a reefed ball in the tackle, but I guess that's just how it appeared on the camera. Even the cas players stopped.

Penalties not consistent - offsides missed for both teams.

We had him v Catalans and he had a whistle-fest that game, I've loathed him sice then so I may be biased....

I spoke to a football referee the other day and he commented without prompting on the poor standard of refereeing in Rugby League

Haurakis reaction was to turn away, awaiting the penalty ....... he couldn't believe his luck when he was allowed to pick the ball up and run with it..... And yep, I expected Laithwaite to get pulled for obstruction when Dwyer went over....

The banter between fans (both Cas & Wire) and the in goal official yesterday was quite funny ........ but I wont say what he said about some decisions or he'll be in trouble

Not enough officials, but then they can afford to have in goal judges at all the non-televised matches. If a referee and the touch judges are any good, they will get in position to see the grounding anyway. You don't even need two senior referees for the two refs system, the NRL don't do it that way.

The refs are missing so much at the ruck, if they're not running backwards and also with them being too far away. There needs to be a ref over it policing all the time, not just when a team gets close to the line and they don't need to run 10, so they can get near to the ruck.

I think both would have been pinged if they were on SKY. I think the result was fair, in so much as we threw the game away and you took full advantage when the cracks started showing, though I do think Mr Hicks is terrified of making a bold call when it directly influences try-scoring.

I think on the video I saw two our ours and two of yours that could've been chalked off - BUT HEY we were thoroughly entertained



you know, the first match I ever went to was Cas v Warrington, and I was about eleven or something. We were stood in the railway end with the majority of the Warrington fans, and there were two blokes behind us, and I still haven't heard ore disgusting language ever since. My dad pulled them up on it and just got a torrent of abuse back.

Since then I always hated Wire fans (though I know we all have our idiots, it's just one of them things that sticks with you, yano) but I have grown up and realised, and been proven time after time, the majority are a great set - Bennie Westwood's dad is actually a friend of some of my family too - so more and more I am wanting Warrington to get the monkey off and win SL.

So all the best for the rest of the year

Back when I was a kid there was a guy called Steve who used to go to the games with his wife and kids. His kids were younger than me, even (this was the mid 90s, so I was around 9-10), and he had the foulest mouth I have ever heard. I always thought it was funny that he was saying swear words, but looking back it was massively inappropriate and he probably had anger management issues, and he'd never get away with it now. He was at every home game and recall being stood with him at Leigh and Cas, too.

Was he aware of the irony of his comment?

There is a decent thread on the Virtual Terrace in regards to referees and coaches, but surprise surprise as it's the VT there are the odd few people on there who can't help but disagree and question your knowledge on the sport. Getting utter s***e on this website recently.......but I'm just going off on a tangent now.

Anyway, back to your comment. I listened to some of Radio Manchester's phone-in and to be honest, it seems to be the same standard as it's always been. Every time someone has an opinion on there, they get shot down by Jack Dearden who seems to disagree with absolutely everyone when they question something about a team, or a player or a coach, or a referee.

The refereeing in Super League at the moment is very inconsistent. We got penalised in a cup game (against Huddersfield I think) for moving off the mark, yet since then I have never seen any further penalties given for that, yet this can happen several times during a game.

Apparently someone was questioning Richard Silverwood about his decisions in the Wigan v Hull KR game, but he kept saying it was either an issue with the VR or the TJ's calling forward passes.

Lots of people are saying Super League should adopt the 2 referee system, but at the moment there isn't enough quality to do 1 referee per game, never mind 2. As for the "on report", that should just be scrapped. It's used as a cop out for referee's. Shoulder charges have been outlawed, therefore it should be an automatic sinbinning, and for much worse incidents, a sending off........not a penalty and a possible "on report" dependent on how bad the tackle was.

Don't get me wrong, I aren't generalising all your fans (as you only quoted the negative part of my post lol) ...but you know how, when it's your first game, and you're a kid.... thing's like that stick with you. So whenever I watch warrington that's the one thing imprinted upon me.

But as I say, last week at the CC semi I had nothing but admiration for your fans, and there was some ood banter flying around yesterday.

Maybe the same two guys were there, who knows!? But they definitely do your bunch an injustice because it's been great ever since

I've a nomination for Warrington's foulest mouth, he was sat outside The Boot Room PH yesterday, but, as there were no kids knocking about he was quite funny in a Chubby Brown/Bernard Manning esque kind of way.

He expletively complained about Wakefield's ground and the signage around Featherstone, everything Yorkshire was on his list ha ha.

Ah well passed half an hour before KO BTW I think your posts have been fair, not seen much evidence of the ref favoured you and is a closet tiger/wire from either side. I've always had a sneaky regard for Classy Cas

Well, i know if I put "we were robbed" on a warrington board it'd be shot down haha! Although that wasn't the case at all. It was (though gritted teeth) an enjoyable game and as weak as the refereeing was, it didn't particularly affect the outcome.

We always have a good crack at you - and hey, we've scored almost 60 points against you in the two games we've played so, glorious at times in defeat... shame about the 90 we have conceded like!!!

It's far too easy to be biased mate - like I say, one incident with one fan stuck with me every time your club is mentioned. Unfair? certainly. It's human nature just the same. But I've got over it



I think (thought this MAY sound biased!) it's hard to DISlike our club really. We are punching a little above our weight but we do everything right - the club is actively involved with the community and our youth set-up is as strong as anyone's in the country...

Just watched the highlights and everything said here seems spot on. Cas looked to be on fire with those quick 4 tries, some great play on show. I think both teams had periods of poor defence.

I know you weren't trying to tar us all with the same, foul-mouthed, brush. I just wanted to share and maybe give credence to your claims

.

I know it was a fair claim, I was there at the time when I heard it



Although I kinda used it as a starting block, building up to the crescendo of a compliment to Wire fans



as if a compliment was rising from the ashes of bad language and bad reffing.....

As has been said, many times the referee has his back to the ruck turns and sees the ball on the ground. IMO he will often guess and give a decision, or maybe if one side is well behind on the penalty count he may use it as an opportunity to even up a little. I feel that the onus should be on the player with the ball to keep a hold of it. Unless it is an absolutely blatant attempt to reef the ball, losing the ball should result in a knock-on. Attacking teams want a quick play the ball, but often will carry the ball too loosely in their attempt to try (poorly on most occasions) to play the ball resulting in the merest glance from their opponent freeing the ball.

I see no reason why a second referee cannot be employed for all SL games. It would be the ideal opportunity to give younger upcoming referees the experience at SL level without the pressure of controlling the game. The only issue I could see is whether some of the more experienced refs (who don't seem to want any help from their TJs) would be happy giving a decision based on the advice of a junior referee.

The referee are under a great deal of pressure, they like all players they make mistakes. Gansons was never afraid to be bold and make decisions as a ref so now let's hope he does the same and adopts the idea with the junior refs as a ruck watcher! I think it's a great idea

I don't think referees are any worst than they have ever been, but the game is faster and they are under more scrutiny than ever with different camera angles etc.

Having said that they now have a couple of cop-outs they never used to have, and that has led to a dilution of their effectiveness, authority and control. You also now have a situation where a player can be sin-binned twice in the same game, where a playmaker (GOB) can be cleaned out regularly, cynically and at great risk to his health, leaving him potentially badly injured and his team one interchange down almost as part of the gameplan. What does the ref do? Put it on report. What do the RL do? Argue the toss about where the contact was and indulge incompetency with excuses.

The on-report option should be scrapped, and VR applied to all games or none - they also need to review the VR process because the number of questionable or downright incorrect rulings is increasing. At the very least, the deliberations should be between the VR and the referee not just the VR, and the dialogue broadcast so they have to rationalise their decisions.

As a referee myself, there is noting harder than taking control of a game. There's so many different thing to be looking for and that's just when you're on your own. Starts with the kick off;
are players offside?
Then has the ball gone out of play from the kick off?
Has it bounced and gone out?
Has it gone out on the full?
IF it hasn't, has the player knocked on when he's catching it?
Is the next pass forward?
Is the tackle high?
Have the players rolled away from the ruck?
Is there interference during the tackle?
Are the markers square?
Has the player played the ball correctly?
Has the acting half back knocked on picking the ball up?

And that's just for one tackle. There's probably loads more too but I cant think off the top of my head. Next time anybody is at a live rugby match they should take off their tinted specs and think about every decision that the referee has to make. Even when there's no penalties there is still a decision that has to be made. Before you all sit there with your pie and pints, you should get out and referee a game for yourself.

'"

On report should go if only to protect vulnerable players such as O'Brien from cheap shots...On both occasions when he has been flattened the offender should have been shown red...On report is a cop out....the offender knows he'll only probably be put on report. Referees should develop some gonads and send these thugs off....Yes, I know some of you will say O'Brien should take responsibility and look after himself....but how is anybody expected to defend himself from such violence ?

I, and I suspect many others, have some sympathy with refs plight, though you're job would be a lot easier if you had competent touch judges. BUT their PRIMARY obligation is the protection of the players - if they miss a forward pass you might get called horrible names but no-one is going to die. However, allowing the current acts of thuggery to go unpunished and thereby condoning it, is going to end with someone in hospital, or worse.