In fairness to the referee, he didn’t discriminate.
Both Ulster and Scarlets were left enraged by yellow cards at Parc Y Scarlets on Friday night, but only one resulted in a penalty try being awarded.
That penalty try was the difference between the sides as the Welsh side downed the Irish province in a hard-fought PRO12 clash.
This game in Llanelli will be remembered as the day rugby got a glimpse at its new future, with Italian referee Marius Mitrea among the first to officiate a professional game using the new high tackle directives that came in on January 3rd.
Ulster back-row Sean Reidy may become an answer in a seriously nerdy rugby table quiz after becoming the first player to receive a yellow card under the new rule, which aims to eradicate reckless tackles around the head.
Under the new law, a reckless tackle occurs when a player “knew or should have known that there was a risk of making contact with the head of an opponent, but did so anyway”.
Reidy, a big back row, was sin-binned and conceded a penalty try after a tackle on a diving diminutive scrum-half Aled Davies. A week ago it would be applauded as a superb try-saving tackle, not in this brave new world.
I've no problem at all with this decision. There, I said it. Has been refereed this way in lower tiers for years. pic.twitter.com/Ler2jqmdKy
— Charlie Morgan (@CharlieFelix) January 6, 2017
Ulster’s All Black flyer Charles Piutau was outraged by the decision that effectively cost the province an away win in the league.
If there's yellow cards for tackles like that,I don't know if there will be any players left on the field 🤔
— Charles Piutau (@CPiutau) January 6, 2017
Unsurprisingly, many of his followers were in agreement.
https://twitter.com/Ulster1999/status/817478006247751681
https://twitter.com/PLillyhammer/status/817484561764544512
how else can you tackle? Big/ small just a big grab on/HIT … #schoolboy
— Bloke in Belfast (@blokeinbelfast) January 7, 2017
But, as we said, the new ruling also impacted on the home side, who lost second-row Jake Ball minutes later under the same rule after a tackle on Clive Ross was adjudged to be high.
Ah, come on now. pic.twitter.com/hUqDB4Ttha
— Ben Coles (@bencoles_) January 7, 2017
There was uproar in the wake of the November Internationals following a slew of what people considered high shots, particularly in the All Blacks’ win over Ireland in Dublin.
People cannot be outraged at the physical toll high, potentially dangerous tackles are having and then be outraged at the rules imposed to try and reduce the number of reckless tackles that start at the upper body and ‘slide up’.
Rugby has an image problem and will struggle to recruit young players into the game unless it does something to make it safer.
Look at the move away from contact American football in schools in the United States and you may be getting a glimpse at what is in store for rugby if the game is not made more accessible and less dangerous.
The latest George North episode suggests the issue of concussion is yet to be properly addressed and, if rugby is thrive, change will have to embraced from the top down.
And we’re not talking about the tackle target area.
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