The NRL's Referee Crisis

[@paddyg]

Great video mate, definitely went overboard with the Buzz Rothfield title for the Clickbait which was not rugby league warranted. I do stand by what I said in the video about how I would fix the bunker & I did mention consistently that I can live with the bad calls during the run of play. Either way bad taste from me and gotta give the refs their flowers cause I thought they were great on the weekend. Gun video mate 🐐 🔥

[@TheLeaguie]

@@paddyg All love brother, that’s an extremely mature way to handle the criticism. I respect your videos heaps and I respect you even more now after that comment. It’s not on you - it’s on the culture. You just got caught in the firing line as a case study. Keep smashing it mate, the more NRL creators with a positive outlook on the game, the better 💚

[@bodycountplays2915]

Get on a video together already 😝

[@NoovaRB]

Ben Cummins is an incredible resilient person because he continued to referee for 4 seasons after the abuse he copped in 2019, and he did an amazing job

[@tigerwalccer]

Completely agree.If you go on any instagram post or KZbin video about any NRL game there will be 100s of comments bashing referees for 50/50 calls. Refs shouldn’t cop that sort of abuse. We can criticise some decisions that are objectively wrong but we shouldn’t label 50/50 calls as “howlers”. There have been calls in the past that have been objectively wrong towards my team and if refs make a really poor call then they can ref reserve grade but they shouldn’t cop all that abuse. Ok yap session over keep it up Leaguie

[@TheLeaguie]

It’s become completely sensationalised. Even in the worst cases where a decision is genuinely objectively incorrect - the refs are humans and will make those mistakes. And those instances are extremely rare anyway

[@dustinmartin6524]

You absolutely nailed it mate. Here’s how I put it people. When a player drops it multiple times a game everyone tells them to keep their head up, that everyone has bad games and that they are only human. When a ref gets one 50/50 call “wrong” in a game they made hundreds of other correct decisions, they are apparently incompetent and robbed the aggrieved team from winning the game. The discrepancy is nuts, I’ve seen games where a player gets protected and told to keep their head up after costing their side 20 points whilst the same people bash the refs for getting a completely non consequential forward pass call potentially wrong All of this to say, as long as rugby league is played by humans there will be mistakes. Mistakes by players, coaches, commentators, analysts and referees. So either we accept our AI overlords and watch robots play every week or we accept that the regular people with the incredibly difficult jobs are going to get things wrong. All of which is escalated by fans not even understanding the rules themselves, not bothering to listen to Graham Annesly’s weekly debrief for clarification and making every call out to be one that decides the game. Roosters lost by 20 and somehow the ref was responsible 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@TheLeaguie]

Could not agree more with every single word you said. I reckon even if we did embrace our AI overlords, people would still complain that the robots don’t have the common sense to rule on grey areas 😂

[@alexneale]

Fantastic essay. I will say as a former referee that there are a few things the refs bosses can do to rehabilitate this: 1) Be more transparent with the public. This isn't just for onfield decisions, have fans get to know their off-field life - refs are footy blokes too, and it's a lot harder to dehumanise someone you've had a beer with or find relatable. 2) Allow more flair in elite referees. This is really similar to what you hear about halfbacks having their Shaun Johnson-like skill moves coached out of them in favour of percentage plays creating samey, robotic people in the position. Referees are the same. Personality and expression is discouraged in high-level reffing in favour of saying specific phrases at certain times, or even moving in the same way. And their robotic brand at the top level isn't doing them any favours. That's not to say this video is absolutely the no. 1 take. There's only one thing I disagree with: Sportsbible should not be called a news outlet.

[@TheLeaguie]

I’m flattered that you’d refer to my incoherent ramblings as an ‘essay’ - that’s high praise! 😂 I agree completely with your two points there. The issue that second point will create is increasing inconsistency. Personally I’m happy to cop that - you’re allocated a referee and you adhere to their interpretation. But the vast majority of fans won’t be. Hence I think why we see this robotic nature now

[@peterplayz7215]

thank you finally someone who thinks. Im sick of the narrative that the "ref is biased" when the person saying that literally supports a fucking team

[@TheLeaguie]

The ref is only ever biased when it’s against the person’s own team 😂

[@TheLeaguie]

LIVESTREAM UPDATE: No watchalongs again this weekend because I'll be attending both finals games - but the watchalongs will be back for both prelims, and for hte post-season internationals 💚

[@Brizzybronzs]

Thanks for the info and livestream update

[@dannys_wrld]

Thanks man can’t wait man also I feel ya I had an operation done on my foot due to an injury And I can’t walk currently but at the rate I’m going should be Alg next week

[@arlomoreland8011]

Hey bro I might be going

[@HenoP4414]

Hey I’m going to cowboys vs shark’s

[@TheLeaguie]

@@dannys_wrld Good to hear you're doing well mate, speedy recovery!

[@UptheCows]

There have been some bad calls this year, but it happens every year. Week 1 finals were one of the best referee performances all year

[@mecklas]

Thank you, finally some sense. I used to do touchie for our local club (with referee Wyatt Raymond nonetheless), and I feel like unless you have actually been in the position to have to make these correct calls, you can never quite understand or appreciate when someone is doing some good refereeing.

[@TheLeaguie]

Agreed. It’s a controversial take but I genuinely believe the referees are the most talented people on footy fields. Taking nothing away from the players - but being able to see the slightest fumble of the ball from 10 meters away, while running under fatigue, checking for onside, and correctly keeping count of the tackles… that’s tougher than the fans could imagine

[@MicroTurtl]

You're one of the most level headed people in rugby league journalism. Love your videos, keep up the good work!

[@TheLeaguie]

Thanks mate, means a lot to read that. It’s a sad indictment on rugby league journalism that a 21 year old seems level-headed but here we are 😂

[@democite]

Earned a sub with this video mate, couldn't be more spot on 👏

[@TheLeaguie]

Thank you mate, I really do appreciate the support 💚

[@Bigdoko1]

As a chooks fan I completely agree with you and the referee problem is overblown but also has many issues and I think referee mistakes is more common then what you were saying it was like just little things like laying down in the ruck and inconsistent penalties etc that all add up some reffs are not upto nrl standard but I think it’s the people who are instructing them to ref how they are if your lowing yourself and doing a perfect tackle and the player slips how is that sin bin ? It’s a contract sport things are gonna happen but if your intent is to go hurt someone then you should get a harsher penalty Milne went straight for munsters legs early in the season and got 2 weeks! The whole judiciary systems needs to change and how refs are instructed

[@TheLeaguie]

We will always get inconsistencies though because each ref is a different person. In the premier league, one ref will have a reputation for being harsh while another is considered lenient. The inconsistency is frustrating sure - but that’s sports.

[@yt.damian]

The refs are involved in every single play and make less mistakes than the players.

[@poonoo87]

Anyone who thinks the NRL has bad refereeing is clearly not an A-League fan. Last year the refereeing in the A-League was actually bad, with even video ref calls being clearly wrong with an excessive amount of red cards. The excessive red cards were happening weekly when that was not the case in the past couple of seasons where the standard of refereeing was no different to any other code. The NRL refs are actually fine, the issue is Rugby League media and shamefully even commentators are the problem. A few years ago I remember the Bulldogs played the Cowboys in Townsville and I remember Andrew Johns saying "the game isn't played in slow motion" when a knock on decision was correct. The commentators often don't know the rules and as far as I'm concerned blatantly create drama that isn't there. If you ever watch a game without commentary you will realise how much they mess with your perception of the game.

[@TheLeaguie]

I 100% agree that so often the commentators don’t know the rule. Especially with penalty tries. The rule is that in the opinion of the video ref, a try would have been scored. It’s a subjective thing. So many commentaries falsely say that you can only give it if a try would have objectively been scored

[@Lynchy626]

@@TheLeaguieNot just would have been scored. But that if not for the foul play, they’re 100% would’ve been a try. It’s a very hard bar to clear, hence it being so rare

[@TheLeaguie]

@@Lynchy626 No no - actually that's the misconception. It doesn't have to be a 100% chance that a try would have been scored. It just has to be that in the video ref's opinion, a try would have been scored (i.e. more likely than not).

[@Lynchy626]

@@TheLeaguie Hmm. Interesting. I thought it was the higher bar, which is why I always rolled my eyes whenever people complain that they didn’t get the penalty try

[@teh_hippo]

1000% agree with you. Great post, great video

[@robbiejordaan4517]

Rugby union fan here, exact same ref bashing is going on on our side.....

[@Greencobra937]

I 100% agree with you why does every one criticise the refs every game their make the problem worse not better

[@Masonk501]

Completely agree with you I feel like no ref ruined the wahs like even though they played bad there were so many bad calls this season

[@TheLeaguie]

Yeah and the wahs had a number of injuries + genuine tight losses. There were a fair few times this year too where they benefitted from a 50/50 call

[@Masonk501]

@@TheLeaguieyeah

[@MrLukeSports]

Good video, elements of truth here. Refs cop it big time, a lot of the time I’d say criticism is aimed at the actual rules themselves rather than the particular ref but for sure it happens. To say howlers are mostly 50/50 calls is dishonest though as weekly we see the refs boss point out major stuff ups in video form. Big difference for me between being upset at a call and hating on a referee and sending death threats. And to suggest nobody has ideas for improvements also isn’t true and you know it considering you used the forward passes as example and the main thing people comment on is why can’t the bunker rule on forward passes. Loving the content mate, agree with most of what you said but just a few things I think you intentionally ignored or didn’t address

[@TheLeaguie]

Yeah no it’s not so much that nobody suggests improvements… it’s just that the vast majority of people don’t. Those are the people I take exception to. With the bunker ruling on forward passes - it’s unfortunately much more complicated than it seems. I was told they tried it in Union and it made things much worse. So while that’s definitely a suggestion, it doesn’t seem to be a solution

[@MrLukeSports]

@@TheLeaguie I think they still need to try it just so we can know and if it works great, if not it stops the suggestion. As for other suggestions, a lot of the time it’s calls changing game to game and week to week so I’m not sure what suggestions you’d want people to say as it’s not so much a fixing of the rule rather than just get the call right

[@TheLeaguie]

@@MrLukeSports Sure, I see the logic to that. But I guess if it didn't work in union, which is obviously a very similar sport, I'd support them not trying it on that basis. I guess though to stop the discussion they could tell us that that's their reasoning. As for getting the call right - that's the kind of thing I mean where it obviously isn't that simple. Our referees are very talented people... so if it was as simple as getting on the same page - they'd do that. Just like individual referees, individual fans have their own interpretations. So they can't 'get the call right' in everyone's opinion

[@MrLukeSports]

@@TheLeaguie you said yourself you heard it didn’t work in union, I take it you don’t watch union as I don’t either. Was it done in a domestic comp, super rugby, international rugby? So many factors to suggest don’t base it off that. Also the refs can be super talented, doesn’t mean the howler calls aren’t legit calls and they definitely haven’t just been 50/50 calls. The basis of your video was paddy g ripped the refs and said they’re ruining the nrl but I legitimately know a lot of people who have stopped watching. Record numbers aside there are plenty who are turning off that I know first hand. I think numbers the nrl pull are based more on what teams are going well as evident by the bulldogs crowd this past week coinciding with us making the 8 for the first time in years. Would love the game to focus on the positives but the reality is the referees make a lot of game changing bad calls that could be and sometimes should be picked up. I’d say the real argument is the on field ref cops the heat for calls the bunker makes which isn’t there fault

[@TheLeaguie]

@@MrLukeSports Yeah I think it was Super Rugby but I'm not sure. Either way, I'm just speculating that that's the reason - the NRL haven't said anything on that. But I do reckon their hesitance to make the change wouldn't be without good reason. They'd have thought it over much more than me and you have. They haven't just been 50/50 calls - but the vast majority have been rougly 50/50. I think this video shows that in the fallout of week one of the finals, 50/50 calls are being called 'completely blatant howlers'. I don't doubt that there are people who have stopped watching - but I attribute that much more to the media's vast exaggeration of the problem than the problem itself. If you're constantly told that howlers happen every week and they're ruining the game - eventually you start believing it.

[@adamwaters9110]

Bad refereeing decisions suck, but they don’t ruin the game and they don’t cost teams games. If a team needed 1 good refereeing call to not go bad, they didn’t play well enough to win the game. I can only think of one game where referee decisions legitimately cost a side a game. It was 2017, Round 8, Rabbitohs vs Broncos. Ash Klein sent up a Korbin Sims effort as Try. There were kicks that deflected and the bunker ruled Korbin was outside 10m so the offside ruling was negated. I thought he was inside 10m, that’s a 50/50 call. He sent up a “Milford” try for Tautau Moga and the bunker originally ruled no Try, but before they finished saying they made their decision, Ash Klein spoke up in his earpiece and said “Can you keep rolling through for Tautau?” It seemed Milford had been held for ages over the line, but just threw the ball away and Moga went over uncontested. The Bunker only looked at possession and grounding, not once thinking about if the player was held. That WAS a howler locked up the scores at 24-24. Ash then missed what seemed to be a blatant dropped call when Milford kicked a field goal to send the Broncs to 25-24. That is the ONLY time I can remember a team being legitimately robbed of a game, and that game still wouldn’t have saved South’s season that year.

[@TheLeaguie]

Agreed for sure. The other notable example that comes to mind for me is Tigers v Cowboys from… I’m gonna say 2022. But point is - it’s absolutely once in a blue moon

[@adamwaters9110]

@@TheLeaguie It was indeed 2022, Round 19.

[@LukeCordner]

I agree 100% - treatment of referees really is keyboard warriors at their worst

[@sb8010]

A Comparison of the frequency of referee bashing in the media in the NRL compared to say the EPL or La Liga or the Super League would be interesting!! I think we would come out in front there. ! I think the referees are in an impossible position due the amount of rule changes and tweaking the NRL has undergone in recent years in an attempt to make it faster, safer and more entertaining. Player safety in particular has forced referees to enforce rule changes that have changed the culture of how the game is played. I would be interested to see if coaches/clubs are briefed beforehand of facets of the game that will scrutinised by refs. For example the Block Play penalties 2 weeks ago during the Knights v Sharks game that seemed to catch both teams completely off guard.

[@TheLeaguie]

I don’t have any insight as to whether clubs are briefed - but it would only make sense that they are. Crackdowns on any area are to discourage that aspect of the game. It only makes sense that teams are told not to do those things before referees crack down on them

[@DabDabGoose]

I think this will continue to be the case unless it ends up like soccer where you have a 3rd party(FIFA) in charge of the referees and not the league themselves, because as it stands it will just stay the way it is with the crackdown on X which changes how the game is played for a few weeks then they stop it and it goes back to how it was, as well as games where the ref won't give a pen for next to anything and others where it's pens non stop because of NRL discretions.

[@TheLeaguie]

NRL directives do seem to play into it - but so do individual referee interpretations. And I can cop that tbh - I can accept that NRL refs aren’t all the same person and so they may referee slightly differently

[@Sportsmusicgod]

Yes while I do believe there are instances like the dragons vs bulldogs 2009 and cowboys vs tigers 2022 when it’s justified but other times like when it’s not

[@TheLeaguie]

It defends what you’re calling ‘justified’ there. While I definitely think the wrong decision was made in both of those instances, anything harsher than professional critique of refs is never justified imo

[@Sportsmusicgod]

And don’t forget coaches like Ricky Stuart and Trent Robison should be mentioned there to

[@parkesyreviewsstuff7587]

It's not just NRL refs. I referee in Brisbane and have seen young teenage refs get abused and have heard abhorrent things said to refs.

[@TheLeaguie]

Absolutely - and it’s the lower levels of the game that are much more under threat than the NRL. There’s already shortages in match officials there - and it’ll only get worse

[@Brizzybronzs]

I would love to become a NRL referee and it has been a dream of mine since I started watching footy about 5-7 years ago but it is a horribly disgusting and disappointing culture that people are going on social media and saying and making content that abuses and threaten referees because of a 50/50 call that they may have got incorrect. The content makers just need to get over the 50/50 calls, it isn’t a big deal if a 50/50 call doesn’t go your team’s way. They need to grow up and show the referees a bit more respect and patience that they do definitely deserve.

[@TheLeaguie]

I’m glad you’ve got that dream - and I’d definitely encourage you to pursue it. But absolutely - it’s in the interests of content creators to blow up every little issue into something huge and sensational. It’s just super disappointing how extreme and negative it’s become

[@Brizzybronzs]

@@TheLeaguie 100% true

[@Brizzybronzs]

@@TheLeaguie As you touched on throughout your video if they don’t have an explanation and referee experience they should just keep there opinions to theirselves rather than making content about the 50/50 calls and making the referees have negative thoughts about their calls.

[@joshuamatkovich64]

I see it as they call what they see. But on the other hand they’re just not consistent with what happens on field, such as sin bins for head highs

[@TheLeaguie]

For sure. High tackles are a very tricky one because they’ve been cracked down on for both medical and legal purposes. It’s very difficult for a referee to judge on the spot whether a tackle threatens either of those areas. And with there being such a high volume of high tackles, each one unique and judged by numerous different individual referees… inconsistency is unavoidable imo

[@tigerwalccer]

Can I make a vid on why this video is right instead of debating you about it 😂

[@TheLeaguie]

I’d be honoured 🫡

[@Lynchy626]

What annoys me about those is always that they never pick the right calls to criticise. The forward passes were 50/50s. They were, regardless of your perspective on what the right call was, errors at worst. But then we have the Luke Keary blatant professional foul. Which isn’t binned. And why’s that? It’s not on the referee. It’s because the NRL doesn’t want the first game of finals to be a pumping. The Roosters were hanging by a thread, and if they binned Keary there, it turns into a blowout. And the refs know this, and they want to keep their jobs. So they follow along with the NRL’s desires. My solution to this is impossible, but this will never end so long as the NRL is beholden to broadcasters and gambling agencies. So long as that’s the case, and it will always be so, the NRL will always want to put their thumb on the scale in cases like that. And that’s not the referee’s fault. That’s on the big whigs.

[@TheLeaguie]

I definitely agree that Keary should have been binned. But even in an event like that - I can see the case for not binning him. I disagree with it - but it wasn’t objectively the wrong call. The reason why it wasn’t blown up in the media is because there’s no anger in missed calls that would have benefitted the winning side. Only the losing side

[@Lynchy626]

@@TheLeaguie Exactly. There’s been plenty of talk about the possible forward pass from Hopoate, and even allegations that the DCE try was an obstruction on Preston, and that Aloai should’ve been binned for his effort on Burton (which I tend to agree with on that one). But the three swinging arms to the head to a player on the ground by Bulldogs players that have invariably resulted in a bin this year being passed up, you won’t hear about those. Because Manly won. And you get neutrals riled up by throwing the result into question, you get the Dogs’ huge fanbase riled up by making them think they were robbed in their fairytale season, and you get Manly supporters riled up defending their teams tough as nails win. Engagement drives clicks drives revenue

[@TheLeaguie]

@@Lynchy626 Couldn't have said it better myself mate. And as a content creator - I could get heaps more views by reporting on those things. That's what others have decided to do... but it doesn't feel right to me.

[@Lynchy626]

@@TheLeaguie Indeed. And I’m coming from the perspective that there are currently some issues with the way that the game is being officiated. But just ranting like those posters is completely counterproductive. Because it creates a hostility towards referees meaning dialogue is more difficult and it forces refs to stick their back up. The Annesley review of the Kennedy offside on Ponga’s field goal attempt is the perfect example. So many people had been ripping in that he went into that video review prepped and ready to fight tooth and nail to prove it was the right call, only to have to stop and say “Okay I can concede he may have left a bit early.”. If we keep forcing the refs into this defensive never back down mindset, we’ll never be able to address actual issues and it’ll just be an eternal shit fight

[@NRLHEAD3214]

With U bro

[@JamesWillis-yy5px]

The Roosters forward pass was terrible. I wanted them to win, so Cowboys would have an easier run.

[@TheLeaguie]

I definitely think it wasn’t forward, but I also wouldn’t call it terrible. It was certainly marginal.

[@beatwave9148]

There's almost certainly going to come a day where there aren't enough first grade refs

[@TheLeaguie]

I’m nowhere near as concerned about that as I am that the referees at the lower levels will dry up. There’s already a massive shortage, and that’s what’s threatening the game the most

[@EpiiKxKiller]

The referee’s aren’t the biggest issue in the NRL it’s the bunker

[@TheLeaguie]

In my opinion the biggest issue in the NRL is junior participation but that’s besides the point. Even the bunker… while I definitely think they should be doing better - I think how badly they’re performing is being exaggerated

[@dannys_wrld]

Only time I got mad was because I was rlly tired at the west vs para spoon bowl And that was because yeah no that day was not my day I got mad at the ref originally but I accepted the result

[@TheLeaguie]

I do completely understand being individually upset with the ref - especially in the short period after a game. But it’s when people publicly have a go at them that I really take issue

[@arlomoreland8011]

Refs get way too much hate ben cummins came back to the nrl after suffering from depression and abused absolutely unexptable from those fans

[@JRPete]

Never had a problem with the refs, just the bunker checking on a player who is clearly milking.

[@TheLeaguie]

That’s a tough one though because the bunker aren’t doctors. If they let play continue and the player isn’t milking - that can be dangerous. Either way though - I’d definitely blame the players who lay down milking rather than the bunker

[@PaulBaird-z6c]

If there was no refs there would be no game, give them a break.

[@TheLeaguie]

Yep - and while there will always be referees at the NRL level, there’s absolutely an increasing shortage of referees at the grassroots level. That will hurt the game

[@riposter69]

Here is the thing I love to hate on the Refs especially when my team loses but Im honest enough to accept it ts just an irrational response to losing. The thing that makes me laughis when fans start using the refs to explain why they lost and it "cost them the game, the season or the old chestnut "what if it happens in a Grand Final?'!!! Its all BS and the worst thing is they think its constructive argument or criticism when its just a temper tantrum

[@Degii_Drills]

First viewer from Papua New Guinea 🇵🇬

[@thecomander466]

Refs are human, expecting refs to be perfect is no different than expecting players not to make mistakes like knock on, it's impossible, only solution is to have game monitored by video referee and passing on decisions to referee on field to blow whistle and pass on video ref call???

[@TheLeaguie]

Yep - and you’d best believe that we’d have the same people complaining if we introduced more video ref into the game

[@SilentVigalante457]

look i get that refs shouldn’t get that much hate but when that much errors happen like that forward pass in the bulldogs vs sea eagles game of course fans are going to blame the ref

[@TheLeaguie]

Can you objectively say that was an ‘error’ though? There’s a lot of people out there (myself included) who don’t even think it was forward. Clearly the ref just agrees with us

[@SilentVigalante457]

@@TheLeaguie yes that’s true im sorry i didn’t mean to offend u

[@TheLeaguie]

@@SilentVigalante457 No no you didn’t at all! I love having discussions like this. I just think a lot of what the media and some fans call ‘errors’ are really much more of a grey area than that

[@Yabanmf666]

Ashley Klein and Todd Smith are not fit to ref at a junior level let alone the NRL. Ash likes to insert himself into the game for no good reason and has been doing it for years. Todd Smith needs to be mentored by Adam Gee to get himself up to scratch. Bill Harrigan also needs to be guiding the current crop of refs, I know he's done it in the past and the standard was far better when he did. It was also shocking to me Adam Gee wasn't on the field this past weekend

[@TheLeaguie]

Righto buddy, thanks for your insight

[@Yabanmf666]

@@TheLeaguie this is just what I see with my own eyes, I don't follow any league media except for you.

[@TheLeaguie]

@@Yabanmf666 I respect your right to your opinion but evidently those refs are capable individuals. And even if you think they aren't - voicing that opinion is just counterproductive imo.

[@Yabanmf666]

@TheLeaguie I don't think referees should get death threats for their decisions on field, but accurate criticism for 2 referees who are not up to scratch is valid. You are exceptional in your coverage of the game we all love. However, I feel you're off on this one. Let's agree to disagree, keep the videos coming

[@TheLeaguie]

@@Yabanmf666 All good mate, yeah as long as we keep things respectful (which we have here) then it’s all good 💚

[@cereal_chick2515]

The referees in league are incompetent and ruining the game. The referees in union are incompetent and ruining the game. The referees in soccer are incompetent and ruining the game. Etc, etc, etc. At some point, we have to face the fact that all these disparate sports don't all magically have a refereeing problem which is magically getting worse with every passing year, but a fan problem.

[@TheLeaguie]

I thought I was in for a very different comment when I saw the notification ‘The referees in league are incompetent and ruining the game…’ 😂

[@cereal_chick2515]

@@TheLeaguie Thanks for hearing me out anyway! It was so refreshing to hear a fan call out this kind of bullshit, especially since I'm going to train to become a union referee myself.

[@TheRedV-odcast]

the only time the ref is wrong is when the dragons lose. But really, I would love to debate about the inconsistency on high tackles.

[@TheLeaguie]

He’s far from the only person to have made a video on that - but it in particular did let me down because I like him as a creator. It’s just such poor form imo

[@TheRedV-odcast]

@@TheLeaguie this isn’t just because I’m a dragons supporter, but how was that Nelson tackle any different from the Olam tackle in I believe the cowboys game.

[@TheLeaguie]

@@TheRedV-odcast Inconsistency definitely exists on high tackles - and it's something I'm frustrated by too - but inconsistencies will exist in all areas by virtue of each referee being an individual with their own interpretation. In the premier league, refs have reputations. One may be known for being particularly harsh while others are particularly lenient, and teams play to the reputation of each referee. On one day, one referee might deem something a high shot that another ref on another day wouldn't. That's frustrating - but it's unavoidable. We can accept it and move on.

[@bodycountplays2915]

Here to see what Paddy G says 😂

[@TheLeaguie]

I have massive respect for his content - which is why that video in particular let me down. I’m much more having a go at the culture than him personally - but he has made the decision to be part of that culture

[@bodycountplays2915]

@@TheLeaguie personally would love to see a debate between you two like you mentioned at the end.

[@TheLeaguie]

@@bodycountplays2915 Open invite to him or any other creator who watches this video and thinks I’m on the wrong side of it

[@rolfbatlantern6604]

Let's not kid ourselves here, a wrong call can determine the outcome of a game. There are numerous examples of that. Just like one play from a key player can change the course of a game, so can a bad call. Here's a solution.... Referees need to be held accountable for making wrong calls. Fine them. If a team places a complaint, A match review committee should be able to determine after a game if certain crucial calls were right or wrong. Just like players are fined, a referee should be fined. The more blatant the mistake, the greater the fine.

[@TheLeaguie]

I see that idea floated from time to time - and it’s one I honestly could not disagree with more. I even nearly included it in this video. Players get fined for illegal actions that endanger other players. Actions that cause physical harm. A referee missing a decision does not do that. What would fining a referee achieve? What lesson would it teach them? Using fines to discourage players from tackling high makes sense… but referees aren’t consciously choosing to make bad calls. All you’d do is make current officials terrified to make decisions for risk of monetary fines, and make potential future officials less likely to want to ref in the NRL. Wrong calls can determine the outcome of a game. That’s part of sport - and it always will be. We simply have to accept that

[@rolfbatlantern6604]

@@TheLeaguie In most occupations your going to be held accountable for making mistakes. Doctors, Pilots, Drivers, Accountants etc. You reckon Referees should just get a "free pass" when they make a bad call? Don't you think less reprocussions may possibly open the door for match fixing? And What about the team that gave their all into a game just to loose it because of a wrong call? Where is justice for them? Look I don't agree with all the Ref bashing as well but I believe it happens because people just want justice, especially if the call is clearly wrong. At least this provides some sort of avenue for justice and may reduce the amount of abuse Refs are currently getting. You said you think it would make them "terrified to make decisions". That's an assumption, why not let's give it a go and see what happens. Who knows it may improve the quality of calls they make.

[@TheLeaguie]

@@rolfbatlantern6604 Referees don’t currently get a free pass though. They get dropped from games. Over the last few years alone off the top of my head we’ve seen it happen to Adam Gee, Kasey Badger, Ashley Klein, Gerard Sutton and Todd Smith. That’s the accountability. Doctors, Pilots, Drivers and Accountants don’t get fined for mistakes in their jobs - unless they cause physical harm to others (which referees don’t). I may have made an assumption about being terrified to make calls - but I don’t see how it could possibly lead to any other outcome. Would you not become anxious at work to hand things in if you knew your boss will fine you if you made a typo? And I’d hazard a guess your workplace isn’t as chaotic as the middle of an NRL field. Match-fixing is an entirely different matter that there isn’t any suggestion of. To imply that nrl refs may do it is far more of an assumption than mine. Fines wouldn’t achieve justice. At best they would achieve some petty revenge. In the extremely rare case where a team directly loses a game through an objectively wrong call - the players and fans have to accept that sport can be cruel at times. As I said to SportBible - if you want fair and perfect outcomes then sports isn’t for you.

[@rolfbatlantern6604]

@@TheLeaguie Yeah I'm starting to get your point. I understand sports can be cruel at times. Bad calls do happen and Referees may not be able to do their work well if they get fined. However, most of the referees you mentioned that were "held accountable", were given a couple of games off, and then were immediately brought back refereeing first grade games on the field or in the bunker. Ashley Klein for example seems to be promoted because he has been given some big games lately. From my understanding, if you make a crucial incorrect call, and the NRL confirms it. They issue an apology, the questioned referee gets sidelined for one or two weeks and after being retrained or something like that, the referee gets reinstated. So although Referees are somewhat held accountable, is it it fair to the affected team and fans? An apology from the NRL is pretty much useless. NRL should actually compensate the affected team, if they find the call to be incorrect. But then again they don't have to. So yeah I guess we just have to accept the bad calls just part of the game.Nothing much we can do. Cheers Mate

[@TheLeaguie]

@@rolfbatlantern6604 Yeah - the refs do come back a few weeks later. So I definitely understand that it's not super harsh, but I'm not convinced there's a harsher punishment that is also practical and effective. In an ideal world, you would definitely compensate the affected team in some way. But especially in the instance of big games, I'm not sure any compensation would be worth losing the result. And we definitely can't have the results of games being changed after the fact... so I reckon we just have to accept it unfortunately.

[@Cj-nm2gg]

👏

[@felixlawryr4565]

With yu braat

[@jarbenmate7702]

So much of the crap refs cop just come from fans who can't accept their team lost, its ridiculous. Definitely some wrong calls here and there, but for the modt part, especially this weekend, it was fine!

[@TheLeaguie]

100%. People love feeling like victims and blaming the ref for a loss is a perfect way to achieve that.

[@jarbenmate7702]

@@TheLeaguie Exactly, the refs are often just scapegoats. People need to just accept that some weeks your team won't turn up, it sucks (much like my beloved Broncos), but you gotta roll with it. Some weeks its yours, some weeks it isn't, no sense blaming the ref all the time!

[@TheLeaguie]

@@jarbenmate7702 100%. And much like whether your team shows up or not - being on the right end of a 50/50 call is also something that goes around and comes around.

[@flurryX]

The touchies ARE USELESS... sorry glorified stick waivers these days ... I have been following this sport for 55 years ... the comparison between old touchies and now is a joke

[@TheLeaguie]

As a former touchie myself - I do think the median NRL fan vastly underestimated what a touch judge’s duties are during a game. But I Ofc accept that they could be better

[@danielmafileo4078]

Replace them with AI

[@TheLeaguie]

‘As an AI language model, I have no idea whether that ball travelled forward either’

[@danielmafileo4078]

@@TheLeaguieWhy would you use AI language model? I was talking about video ai. They can assist and even replace tmo or the bunker decision makers. This can remove human error or human bias.

[@GG1shot]

hop off it

[@GG1shot]

but i see were youer coming for and they also signed a contact to ecpect that.