Romain Poite gives his little scream!

Guest of the RMC “Entre les Potos” podcast, former international referee Romain Poite, returned to the criticism that referees had to face during the Rugby World Cup, especially in the final stages.

It’s no secret that refereeing has been at the heart of discussions during the Rugby World Cup. Especially since the controversial performance made by New Zealander Ben O’Keefe during the quarter-final match between France and South Africa (28-29). Since that meeting, every decision has been scrutinized, analyzed and dissected in an attempt to find incriminating evidence for the arbitral tribunal.

“The risks took precedence over the game. What is unfortunate is that all the final stages were organized around one person’s turn but that is not rugby.”confides in former international referee Romain Poite on the RMC Entre les Potos podcast. There are 30 actors accompanied by one person, the referee. We were waiting for a refereeing error or an opportunity to discredit the refereeing because we felt frustrated with the quarter-finals. Often, bias clouds judgments. There are also errors and questions on the part of the referee regarding positions and decision making. “The end of the World Cup was devastating compared to the atmosphere surrounding it.”

For the former French referee, three World Cups under his belt, the advent of the dugout and other tools has led to – Loss of sensitivity and responsibility in decisions“.

“I spoke with Mathieu Reynal during the France-Namibia match, where there was a red card that should have been given (foul on) Dupont. It’s easy to put a red card there. The irony is that Matthew Carley flashed the red card on screen. All these phenomena revealed everything related to the management of the team by the central referee, who bears responsibility for all decisions but also manages. The sensitivity of the field is gradually lost. We truly consider this part of the responsibility.”

After the elimination of the French XV against the future world champions, Fabien Galthiet wrote to Ben O’Keefe. “There were nine clips that I edited with Jérôme Garcés and sent to Joel Goetje (head of referees at World Rugby) and to Ben O’Keeffe and his team because we needed to get answers about the decisions made during the match. That was around day five, knowing that we were no longer We are in a state of emergency for the World Rugby Championship as they prepare for the semi-finals.

via RMC Sport