Danny v Dan - Cipriani eager to meet Carter

By JENNI RUTHERFORD in London - RugbyHeaven | Tuesday, 25 March 2008

England's man of the moment Danny Cipriani is relishing a chance to pit his talents against Dan Carter when the team tours New Zealand in June.

The 20-year-old London Wasp has made it clear that he wants to make the No 10 jersey his own and oust Jonny Wilkinson as the first-choice first five-eighth.

"It would be amazing to come up against Dan Carter, who is a phenomenal player. I have tried to mimic things he does," Cipriani told the Sunday Express. "I watch Super 14 games all the time - it is a competition I have watched since I was young.

"A lot of players will go out [to New Zealand] and learn and improve themselves as players, I want to improve tenfold."

Xavier Rush has warned Warren Gatland not to get too carried away with the prospect of claiming a first Springbok scalp in South Africa when his Grand-Slam winning Wales side tour the Republic in June.

The Cardiff Blues captain believes that world rugby is at a crossroads with the northern and southern hemispheres playing different versions of the game after the introduction of the Experimental Law Variations in the Super 14 which could mean that victory against South Africa may rely on which laws are adopted.

"We've got half the world playing one game and the other half playing another game," the Kiwi No 8 told the Western Mail. "It's hard to know what rules we are going to be playing in the future or where it's all going.
"But I just think it's a bit bizarre we've got one hemisphere playing one game and another hemisphere playing another game at the moment. You are watching one set of rules in the Super 14 and a totally different set of rules in the Six Nations and Heineken Cup.

"If Wales have to play the new rules in the autumn, it's going to be a bit of a disadvantage because the southern hemisphere has had six months to get used to them and play them."

"Any penalisable offence in ruck and maul is just a free-kick now in the southern hemisphere, which means the game is a whole lot quicker down there than it is up here at the moment.

"There's a lot of free-kicks and not many line-outs because there are virtually no penalties, so people aren't kicking for touch.

"The ball-in-play time in a game is 38 minutes, whereas we are at about25 minutes.

"So it's a lot more about fitness and skill, rather than power. I'd have to lose about 5kgs to play under the new rules."

It was a reunion of sorts, meanwhile, at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday for former Crusaders team-mates Justin Marshall and Chris Jack when Saracens, of the English Premiership, met the Ospreys, the Welsh Magners League side, in the semifinal of the Anglo-Welsh Cup.

Marshall got about 25 minutes game-time in the 30-3 victory by the Ospreys after starting on the bench. He was a blood replacement for Wales fullback Lee Byrne before replacing Mike Phillips, the Wales halfback for the final 20 minutes.

Disaster struck for Jack just after half-time when he was forced to leave the field with a suspected broken hand that could impact on his involvement in the upcoming Heineken Cup quarter-final.

It is a blow for the former All Black lock, who earlier in the week said that he was enjoying his first season at the Watford-based club and admitted that he was genuinely surprised by the quality of rugby in England.

"The way these guys play is exceptional. That is the first thing that surprised me when I got here," he said. "The rugby they play is open and wide and then when you play against the England side their play is not."

Another Cantabrian and former All Black Aaron Mauger was not part of Leicester's 10-point victory over London Wasps in the other semifinal in Cardiff after being ruled out with a hamstring injury.

Carlos Spencer in particular will be happy to see the back of the National League One after Northampton ensured their promotion back to the Guinness Premiership with their 26^thsuccessive victory on Saturday.

Spencer admitted that the facilities and conditions in English rugby's second tier competition is a long drop down from those he experienced in the top flight.

"Some of the pitches have been crap, absolute crap, especially last weekend. Fair play to the guys who play in those conditions all the time," Spencer told The Times.

"And some of the changing-rooms have been so small we could hardly move. I've learnt that you've got to be first into the shower, otherwise the water will be cold."

NZ rugby prepares for major talkfest

Rugby Heaven | NZPA |Tuesday, 25 March 2008

The sustainability of rugby in New Zealand comes under the microscope at a two-day forum starting in Wellington on Wednesday.

Even the most traditional vestiges of the national game, such as the provincial championship, will not be safe from dissection as a wide array of rugby shareholders seek to boost sagging elements of the sport.

An apparent slump in interest over the past two years - measured by falling crowd and television viewing figures - and the departure of top players to big-spending overseas clubs are prominent issues to be addressed.

Perhaps even more pressing are the mounting financial problems faced by provincial unions, many of which reported significant financial losses last year.

Officials from each of the 26 unions and five Super 14 franchises will address the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) about changes needed at all levels to improve rugby's health over the next five years.

Joining them will be invited players and coaches and other rugby thinkers such as John Hart and Grant Fox.

At the heart of discussions will be how to fund professional rugby in a world market dominated by the massive finances of French and English clubs, while also managing the need of the amateur game here.

NZRU chief executive Steve Tew said he could sense an appetite for innovation, with his organisation to act as a facilitator for all manner of ideas.

Changes to the way players are contracted and a tweak to All Blacks' eligibility rules may be forthcoming while the introduction of overseas franchises and venues for professional rugby competitions could not be discounted.

The domestic Air NZ Cup enters its third year under an expanded 14-team format this year, after which it was to be reviewed.

Several provinces have felt the financial squeeze, having to pay players sums they cannot afford to remain competitive, and have reported losses in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Otago, Northland and Southland have voiced particular concern while last week the ailing Bay of Plenty union announced an assistance package from the NZRU, something critics fear could become an ongoing scenario.

New Otago chief executive Richard Reid walked into enormous financial problems at his union.

"We've got to make sure we've got the money to pay for everything, clearly that's a big one, generating income," he told RugbyHeaven, pointing out that income only came from four sources.

"If that fluctuates, whether it be sponsorship, gaming machine funding, grants from New Zealand rugby or test match allocation, it doesn't have to move far for you to have a pretty average year."

Struggling unions have already started cutting back on contracted player numbers to the national minimum of 26 and reducing their wage budgets which are mostly well under the salary cap.

By contrast, the bigger unions such as Canterbury have voiced concern about a competition that doesn't allow it to maximise its earning potential.

Some solutions already raised include reducing the number of teams in the provincial championship - possibly through amalgamation - the involvement of Australian teams or running it as an amateur competition concurrently underneath the Super 14.

New Zealand Rugby Players' Association head Rob Nichol recently warned that New Zealand was on the verge of becoming a "feeder" nation to the northern hemisphere if changes to the New Zealand structure were not forthcoming.

Nichol has touted private ownership of Super 14 franchises as the next step to inject money into a limited market.

Since rugby turned professional in 1995 those franchises have been run by the NZRU and the players all centrally contracted.

Former All Blacks coach Hart supports Nichol's view, believing it is the only way to keep pace with the northern juggernaut.

"Suddenly, their (English and French) models are looking far superior as they are beginning to evolve the partnerships that will take their game forward, while ours stagnates," Hart said.

"European football has proved that money can be made from the club game and there are now billionaires from the US lining up to buy their way into British football."

Hart is concerned by figures that test rugby in Europe generates about three times the money of the tests in the southern hemisphere.

He said those disparities would only grow under current structures.

However, Craig Norgate, a prominent New Zealand businessman and a former director of the NZRU, believes privatisation surrenders a strategic advantage of New Zealand rugby.

He fears the franchises will all fall into rich foreign hands and spark the onset of a war over who has first rights on players, something that has plagued the French and English games since 1995.

Norgate instead advocates scrapping the Air NZ Cup, which he believes no longer has a place in the professional game and was decimating provincial financial accounts.

He will get support on that front from Australian rugby boss John O'Neill, who wants Super rugby to cover half the year, with mid-year inter-hemisphere tests turned into midweek fixtures.

Welsh club looking to land All Blacks

By MARC HINTON - RugbyHeaven | Tuesday, 25 March 2008

Ambitious officials from the Newport-Gwent Dragons club are in New Zealand looking to land themselves a big-name All Black signing or two for the next northern season.

Dragons chief executive Gethin Jenkins and coach Paul Turner are both in this country on a scouting mission and they've told media in Wales they are confident they can pick up All Blacks who can help lift the club to a position where they can challenge for silverware.

Jenkins confirmed to the Wales on Sunday newspaper that they have had discussions with a number of All Blacks, and they were hopeful of securing the services of some who could prove influential figures at the club.

The success of former Blues and Auckland skipper Xavier Rush at the Cardiff-based Blues has shown the sort of influence the right sort of signing can have, and the Dragons seem determined to follow a similar pathway.

"We are looking at possible recruits available to us," Jenkins told the Welsh paper. "Everybody knows we are excited about the crop of exciting Welsh talent, but we also need some experienced players.

"We are looking for players who can give us direction and leadership.

"Going for overseas talent has happened at Rodney Parade before but we will only sign the right players.

"We have been accused of lacking ambition but we are ambitious – we just aren't willing to get caught in a boom-or-bust cycle. When you look at the influence somebody like Xavier Rush has had at the Blues you can see what the right overseas player can bring to any side."

Welsh media were speculating that the Newport-based club could come out with a major announcement on a new signing as early as this week.

The Dragons have been quiet in the player-movement market of late and this has led to speculation they are keeping their powder dry to bring over some serious sort of All Black talent.

Welsh internationals Michael Owen and Ceri Sweeney are leaving the club this summer, and it is speculated that the club must act now to lift itself out of the lower regions of the Magners League table currently being occupied.

McCaw the Super Crusader

by Super Wrap | www.supersporyt.co.za | 24 March 2008 (19:07)

Richie McCaw, in setting a magnificent example for his teammates to follow in their quest for a seventh Super Rugby title, has revealed the secret of the Crusaders’ success.

The All Black captain, who has turned the 2008 Super 14 tournament into a personal crusade to arise after last year’s RWC disappointment by leading Canterbury to success in what they’ve dubbed “the 13th Crusade” revealed the elusive formula while being interviewed after his team’s victory over the Waratahs at the weekend.

Typically there were no big statements from McCaw but what he said did not elude the SuperWrap for it contained the essence of what makes the Crusaders great.

Referring to the fact that the Crusaders had been trailing 6-7 after 50 minutes, McCaw said he had impressed on his men the need to “look after the ball in contact” before they mounted a surged that resulted in a 34-7 victory.

And there it was. “Look after the ball in contact.”

Much is said about the Crusaders’ tradition, about their depth, about their fitness, about their talented individuals, about their pride, about the coaching of Robbie Deans but contained in all that is a single kernel, one of the oldest axioms, that you cannot play without the ball.

The SuperWrap would like to suggest that South Africa’s five Super Rugby coaches ask SuperSport for a couple of DVDs of McCaw uttering his single profound phrase. “Look after the ball in contact.”

They should play it in team rooms, dressing rooms and on coaches. Insist that the players add it to whatever they listen to on their music players or whatever they look at on their laptops. “Look after the ball in contact.”

Imprint the message and hopefully the players will go to the next stage of emulating the Crusaders by realising what underpins the philosophy revealed by McCaw because once they appreciate that it’s all about “looking after the ball’ they may start to eliminate the errors that have made this, Sharks apart, a dismal season for South Africa.

Because to protect the ball you need superior fitness to provide a constant phalanx of support; you need to be thinking all the time about not giving the ball away; you need to be on top of the set pieces to make sure you win it easily; you need to be aware of where your support is; you need to have the skill to handle it; you need to have imagination to use it cleverly and you need to have utter belief in what you’re doing.

It is the contention of the SuperWrap that the essential problem in South Africa’s teams is, to use another cliché, that they don’t “respect the ball” enough.

This old game is about the ball. Winning it, keeping it, using it to score points and then starting again.

As McCaw says “it’s about keeping composure and doing the right things” -- something markedly lacking in most local teams. When it comes to the Crusaders it is not about their being favoured by the ELVs; they’re simply doing what they’ve always done and that is bringing to every match the machinery needed to control the ball.

And the Crusaders skipper’s professionalism is an object lesson to those many top class players (mostly in the Bulls) who have been doing little more than going through the motions this season.

He sets incredibly high standards as shown by the fact that he is the only player to make the “Super XV”, compiled by the SuperWrap and sundry cronies, as an acknowledgement of form after every week of the first six weeks of the tournament.

The Super XV for Week Five:

1 Simms Davison (Chiefs), 2 Huia Edmonds (Brumbies), 3 John Afoa (Blues), 4 Brad Thorn (Crusaders), 5 Mark Chisholm (Brumbies), 6 Jerome Kaino (Blues), 7 Richie McCaw (Crusaders), 8 Sione Lauaki (Chiefs), 9 Brendon Leonard (Chiefs), 10 Dan Carter (Crusaders), 11 Fetu’u Vainikolo (Highlanders), 12 Tyrone Smith (Brumbies), 13 Casey Laulala (Crusaders), 14 Lelia Masaga (Chiefs), 15 Chris Latham (Reds).

The Bok Barometer for Week Six:

1 Heinke van der Merwe (Lions), 2 Schalk Brits (Stormers), 3 Brian Mujati (Stormers), 4 Danie Rossouw (Bulls), 5 Adriaan Fondse (Stormers), 6 Schalk Burger (Stormers), 7 Wikus van Heerden (Bulls), 8 Joe van Niekerk (Lions), 9 Jano Vermaak (Lions), 10 Jaco van Schalkwyk (Lions), 11 Jongi Nokwe (Cheetahs), 12 Walter Venter (Lions), 13 Jaco Pretorius (Lions), 14 Tonderai Chavhanga (Stormers), 15 Conrad Jantjes (Stormers).

Match of the Week: To the ‘mystery' game, played in the shadow of the most beautiful mountains called the “Remarkables”, at 3.30 in the morning (SA time) between the Highlanders and the Force in Queenstown -- the men from Perth staging their by now customary late rally to take the spoils 36-28. In only their third year of existence the Force have an excellent chance of reaching the semifinals after battling through a tough draw. They have accumulated four wins (out of five) on the road and five of their remaining seven matches will be at home at the Subiaco Oval.

Try of the Week: Fetu’u Vainikolo’s stunning solo effort, speed, step, swerve, for the Highlanders; edging the amazing 70-metre effort by Peter Hynes for the Reds at Ellis Park.

Schlepper of the Week: Steve Walsh. Wikipedia informs the SuperWrap that Matinee Idol, i.e. the star of the Saturday afternoon show, is a term used mainly to describe film or theatre stars who are adored to the point of adulation by their fans (and probably feel the same way about themselves!) and that invariably the adulation is fixated on the actor’s looks rather than his performance. For reasons unkown Walsh has not been a favourite of the Sharks and you can add the Cheetahs to those who will not pay at the gate to see him perform on the whistle. Not only is Walsh colour blind, describing the Cheetahs’ jersey as “red” instead of “orange”, but his petulant reaction to sinbin Falie Oelschig, who had been complaining to the referee about some nefarious deed in a ruck, for foul language was oversensitive in the extreme. Willie Roos had the same reaction to something Stephen Hoiles said the week before. Doubtless the refs will produce thousands of words of justification, but the SuperWrap believes it is time they got off their high horses. All this kind of thing does, is show that the men who play such an important role in a team’s fortunes have no feel for the game they’re involved in.

Quick thinking: Cheetahs captain Rory Duncan trying to convince Steve Walsh that Oelschig had been saying something in Afrikaans!

Bloem bleeps: If Steve Walsh’s sensitive nature was affronted by what he heard Falie say imagine if he had been in Bloemfontein on Friday evening!

We’re waiting… for Kurtis Haiu to be cited. If there’s any equity and consistency in the citing procedure the Blues lock, who was caught on camera punching Stormer Deon Fourie in a maul and then aiming another swing at Brock Harris, simply cannot escape at least a hearing.

Mysteries of the Super 14: Why is it that all the match officials have to be neutral yet the people who have to make arguably the most crucial decisions, the TMO and the citing officer, are local?

Duh?! Dear old Murray Mexted finally finding out why its called a banana kick. It’s not about the islands, or the colour but about the curve! Thanks for joining us Mex!

And the Jorrie goes to…? Mark Gerrard, who joined an illustrious list, that includes props, locks and lady mayors, by missing a shot at goal from right in front.

Congratulations to:

100 Super Rugby matches: George Smith of the Brumbies who almost incredibly reaches the milestone at the age of just 27 after making his debut in 2000 against the Sharks.

50 matches: Guy Shepherdson of the Brumbies and Josh Valentine (35 for the Reds, 12 for the Waratahs).

If you’re good enough… Matt Toomua’s debut for the Brumbies against the Hurricanes recently makes him the fourth youngest player on Super Rugby debut, aged 18 years and 27 days. This means that the five youngest players on debut ever are all Australians -- David Pocock (Force) 18 years 19 days, Kurtley Beale (Waratahs) 18 years 27 days, Sipa Taumoepeau (Brumbies) 18 years 35 days, Toomua and Rob Horne (Waratahs) 18 years 205 days. The youngest ever New Zealander was Doug Howlett (18 years 230 days) and the youngest South African was Jaco van der Westhuyzen (18 years 364 days). Interestingly the Aussies have four others on the list of 18-year-old debutants -- Mark Gerrard, Elton Flatley, Quade Cooper and Caleb Brown.

Quote of the Week I: “One more piece of foul play directed at me, you’re in trouble.” -- Steve Walsh to Falie Oelschig.

Quote of the Week II: “To go three points down, softly like that in a game … the refs don't understand how critical those sort of calls are in the context of the game. It's disappointing they don't understand that. It wasn't dangerous play. He [Williams] didn't go to the ground. [But] there is three points on the scoreboard, a minute and a half into the game. I don't know what it is with the refs. But it seems like we are getting a little bit of the raw end of the deal. Maybe we should stop being so friendly to them in the hotel foyer and things like that." -- Phil Waugh complaining about Craig Joubert’s handling of the Waratahs’ game against the Crusaders.

Quote of the Week III: “It’s getting gentle with the game of rugby.” -- Murray Mexted on the questionable lineout penalty referred to above.

Quote of the Week IV: “Don’t stand and yell how to referee the game.” -- Bryce Lawrence to Chris Latham at Ellis Park.

Quote of the Week V: “He had everyone confused there for a moment, the referee.” -- Aussie commentator Greg Clark says it for all of us.

RugbyLet’s get a’rucking

by Dan Retief | www.supersport.co.za | 19 March 2008 (13:07)

One of the most extraordinary aspects of the unfolding Super 14 is the fact that the Aussies are complaining that the law experiments have rendered the game less physical.

Down the years it’s been the Kiwis and we Saffers who have complained about the Aussies always pushing to depower the scrum, whingeing about rucking and generally going on about the “thugby” that New Zealand and South African fans so revel in.

Many have been the laments from us about the changes the Aussies have visited upon the game in the name of continuity and entertainment as part of their endless battle with league.

But now you have Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher, in the midst of a tirade against South African referee Willie Roos, actually calling for the re-introduction of the ruck to professional rugby.

Fascinating to say the least because if there was one aspect the Aussies used to get in a huff about it was being worked over by the studs of some brutal Kiwi sheep farmer and spewed out the back of the ruck like a roo being spat out from under the wheels of a big articulated unit somewhere in the outback.

Rucking used to be seen as a lame excuse for gratuitous violence so I’m pleased to see the Aussies have taken up the cudgels – their Press being quick to pick up on the theme raised by Fisher.

In fact it is more surprising that the Kiwis have not been wailing even louder.

In a column some time ago I wondered why the New Zealanders were so quiet about the “no-studs-on-the-man” instruction to referees for it robbed them of arguably the defining aspect of their game.

To my mind there are few finer sights than that of an All Black pack, getting into tight formation, swooping low, and blasting over the ball on the ground (and whoever or whatever else happens to be there) to leave it free and ready to be played with.

We in South Africa have never really been good at rucking; perhaps because of the erratic bounce of the ball on our hard grounds. South Africans preferred to maul the ball (i.e. get it off the ground and use our traditional strength to wrestle opponents into submission) and tended to think that rucking meant a licence to kick the s*#! out of anyone lying near it.

However the rule about studs making contact with the bloke on the ground denied the Kiwis one of their key attacking weapons and now the ELVs allied to free-kicks rather than penalties have made it worse.

Players now have carte blanche to get their hands on the ball and stay attached in the knowledge that they can’t be penalised with three points while the attackers have no way of clearing the loiterers – as they would have been had they been permitted to ruck.

There is also no point in calling for the referee to be quicker on the whistle. We’ve seen what happens when there are a succession of free-kicks and tap-and-goes. Attacking teams would much prefer to get the ball quickly going forward with some opponents tied up in the ruck rather than standing up and facing them.

There are some aspects of the ELVs that have made for a better game – such as the extra space at scrums – but there has also been a great deal of sloppy play and unnecessary kicking.

The breakdown continues to be the key problem and for once I’d like to sing along with the Aussies. Bring the ruck back so teams can move the lurkers themselves, blow the off-sides laws as they’re written in the book and you’ll immediately see a more fluid game.

Sadly the biggest victims of the experimentation are the poor old referees. They don’t make the laws but have to apply them and they’re on a hiding to nothing because to my mind some of the laws being trialed are complicating rather than simplifying their job.

RugbyThe Tin Gods are angry

by Super Wrap | 18 March 2008 (17:18)

Rugby referees have gone on the attack after a weekend of Super 14 rugby in which the ELVs and rugby’s officers of the law gained more publicity than the players.

Round Five produced a number of incidents that had commentators lamenting the state of the game.

Lyndon Bray sent Chris Latham to the sinbin for a studs on man incident that was as far removed from rucking as gumboot dancing is from ballet and Willie Roos gave Stephen Hoiles the same punishment for using foul language!

The SuperWrap kids ye not. This is really what happened in the game we used to know as rugby, but by far the most contentious incident, and one which allegedly did involve some profanity, surrounded an incident at Ellis Park in which Sharks hooker Bismarck du Plessis was not allowed to return to the field after having a cut attended to.

Most, including Sharks coach Dick Muir, felt Du Plessis had made the 15 minute period allowed for such an incident and SuperSport’s Sunday show All Out Rugby said as much by highlighting the passage of time indicated on the match clock.

But the referees are striking back. An unattributed article on the SA Rugby Referees website rushes to the defence of the officials at Ellis Park but, in the mind of the SuperWrap, succeeds only in demonstrating that Dick Muir’s word, “pedantic”, was right.

Here is what the referees have to say. You make up your own mind.

In the programme All Out Rugby on South African television it was stated that the referee had made a bad decision when Bismarck du Plessis was not allowed onto the field after he had gone off bleeding from a cut above his right eye. Was it a bad decision?

“Du Plessis of the Sharks bled from a cut over the eye. He went off to get attention and then came to the touch-line wanting to come back on. The referee said that he could not come back on. There was a debate on the touch-line in which some of the Sharks management were obviously upset that Du Plessis was not allowed back on.

“It is difficult to give exact times from the television, but as near as possible we give a programme of events. The claim is that Du Plessis had been off for 11 minutes when he presented himself for readmission and that this confirmed (sic) to the 15-minute allowance for bleeding players.

“The timetable looks roughly like this:

“14 minutes 54 seconds: Du Plessis and Keegan Daniels bang heads at a tackle. Du Plessis reels back holding his eye. Medical staff come onto the field and attend to him. Play goes on for some time and does not stop till BJ Botha has scored a try.

“16 minutes 30 seconds: Botha scores a try. He plunges over from a tackle/ruck on the Lions line in which Du Plessis was involved. When Du Plessis got involved, it was obvious that his eyebrow was bloodied.

“Rory Kockott kicks the conversion and the Lions kick the kick-off out on the full.

“18 minutes 49 seconds: The referee sets a scrum and Craig Burden is there to take up the hooking position in Du Plessis's place.

“One can assume that between 16 minutes 30 and 18 minutes 49 Du Plessis left the field.

“30 minutes 19 seconds Du Plessis is shown at the touch-line ready to come on. There is a stoppage at this stage and the Lions are about to kick for touch. Because there is a stoppage it is a suitable time for Du Plessis to return to the field. The referee tells him that he may not return.

“The times we have given are the times as they appear on the television clock. Even if Du Plessis had gone off exactly when Botha scored he had till 33 minutes 40 before 15 minutes was up on the clock.

“The argument is that when he presented himself for readmission he was within a minute of the 15 minutes allowed him.

“That is why the decision has been called a wrong one.

“But it is not as simple as that.

“Let's start with law and an important little word in brackets.

“Law 3.10 10 TEMPORARY REPLACEMENT

“(a) When a player leaves the field to have bleeding controlled and/or have an open wound covered, that player may be temporarily replaced. If the player who has been temporarily replaced does not return to the field-of-play within 15 minutes (actual time) of leaving the playing area, the replacement becomes permanent and the replaced player must not return to the field-of-play.

“The important little word is actual.

“The time that appears on the television set is playing time, not actual time. When the referee calls Time, the clock is stopped. While Du Plessis was off there were three stoppages, three incidents when time was off.

‘The first was at the first scrum after Ross Geldenhuys had been sent to the sin bin. Time was needed to allow JC Janse van Rensburg to come on into the front row and Joe van Niekerk to go off. Then time was needed to attend to hooker Willie Wepener's thumb which was strapped.

“The second was a short one while a player tied a lace before a scrum.

“The third was a long one. First Ross Geldenhuys was allowed back onto the field after being in the sin bin and he was spoken to. Then there was delay for an injury.

“Those were the obvious stoppages when the referee called time off.

“He called time off because those stoppages were not a part of playing time and so not recorded on the television clock. But that time was a part of actual time.

“There is reasoning behind this. The temporary replacement for bleeding is to give time for a minor injury to be attended to - partly for the sake of the other players in days when the possibility of contaminated blood is a worry. It was reckoned that 15 minutes would be enough to get the bleeding stopped and cleaned up in the case of a minor injury. Longer than 15 minutes suggests a more serious injury in which case it would be in the player's interests not to play on.

“Du Plessis had an arch of stitches over his eyebrow. For all anybody knows it may have been in his interests not to come back on - not that that was the referee's concern but it perhaps explains the lawmakers thinking.

“The 15 minutes is not a punishment. People speak of the blood bin and the sin bin. The sin bin is for punishment, the blood bin to protect the player's health. It's not a punishment.

“Applying the law is not pedantic any more than blowing a "little" forward pass or a "little" knock-on or a "little" off-side is pedantic. At what stage does 15 minutes cease to be pedantic? At 17? 18? 20?

“Now, who keeps time. It is primarily the referee's responsibility but there are three other people who may come into play in this matter.

“On the touch-line there are two men in referees garb who control the coming and going of players. They are referred top as No.4 and No.5. They are not timekeepers.

“Who keeps time?

“Law 5.3 TIME KEEPING

“The referee keeps the time but may delegate the duty to either or both the touch judges and/or the official time-keeper, in which case the referee signals to them any stoppage of time or time lost. In matches without an official time-keeper, if the referee is in doubt as to the correct time the referee consults either or both the touch judges and may consult others but only if the touch judges cannot help.

“That the referee needs a timekeeper to help him is obvious. Just in this match at Ellis Park he would have had to keep match time, allowing for stoppages, check the ten minutes that Geldenhuys was in the sin bin and keep that time exact and keep tabs on the time Du Plessis was away getting stitched - oh, and see to applying all the other Laws of the Game.

“At Ellis Park where this match was played, there is an efficient system of timekeeping with two timekeepers. One is the manager of Golden Lions referees, the other the chairman of Golden Lions referees, a former provincial referee. Two are used to make doubly sure in case there is some failure in the system. Both have the ability to contact the referee but only one does so, as the Laws of the Game demand - "the official time-keeper". The referee deals just with the one - the designated one. That is what happened in this case.

“The official timekeeper was able to tell the referee that Du Plessis's 15-minute allowance had passed.

“There was nothing sinister about what happened. It happened in accordance with the Laws of the Game and the times can in fact be verified because the timekeeper keeps a log.”

Apart from the unnecessarily sarcastic tone of the article the SuperWrap is of the opinion that the Sharks were, indeed, done in. If there is an official log why not produce it?

What’s more, even if Du Plessis left the field after 16½ minutes (which is probably a little earlier than he actually did) he presented himself back on the touchline in the 30th minute – in other words a minute and a half inside the cut-off line. If he left slightly later he would have obviously have beaten the time limit by a little more.

It’s pushing it a little on the part of the referees to suggest that in a 13½ period some 90 seconds of extra/actual time was added and it does seem petty/pedantic that the player was fouled for what, at the utmost, might have been a couple of seconds.

Another puzzle is that the times apparently provided to the Press at Ellis Park spoke of Du Plessis departing in 18 minutes and 22 seconds and returning at 34 minutes 15 seconds. It is not clear from which source reporters obtained these (precise) splits but they are at odds with what was shown on the television clock and indicate that Du Plessis might have left a good minute later and thus had even more time to get back.

The SuperWrap has often warned that the system of introducing substitutes is flawed and even made suggestions of how it can be improved. In Round Four Bakkies Botha returned from the sinbin some two minutes early to help the Bulls to score a try against the Lions and not a week goes by that players depart, get replaced or re-appear seemingly without restriction.

It is the contention of the SuperWrap that the sinking of Bismarck was bound to happen – it was just a question of when.

*The “Bok Barometer” for Week Five contains an unprecedented first in that includes three former Zimbabweans in props Tendai Mtawarira and Brian Mujati and wing Tonderai Chavhanga.

“The Beast” and Mujati are both from Peterhouse while Chavhanga, who is looking increasingly impressive now that he has shaken off a succession of injuries, is a Prince Edward boy who, of course, holds the Springbok record of 6 for tries in a test match.

The Super XV for Week Five:

1 Greg Holmes (Reds), 2 Tai McIsaac (Force), 3 Neemia Tialata (Hurricanes), 4 Brad Thorn (Crusaders), 5 Nathan Sharpe (Force), 6 Richie McCaw (Crusaders), 7 Chris Masoe (Hurricanes), 8 Rodney So’oialo (Hurricanes), 9 Rory Kockott (Sharks), 10 Matt Giteau (Force), 11 Drew Mitchell (Force), 12 Jean de Villiers (Stormers), 13 Casey Laulala (Crusaders), 14 Hosea Gear (Hurricanes), 15 Chris Latham (Reds).

The Bok Barometer for Week Five:

1 Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks), Schalk Brits (Stormers), 3 Brian Mujati (Stormers), 4 Johann Muller (Sharks), 5 Andries Bekker (Stormers), 6 Schalk Burger (Stormers), 7 Jacques Botes (Sharks), 8 Ryan Kankowski (Sharks), 9 Rory Kockott (Sharks), 10 Peter Grant (Stormers), 11 JP Pieterse (Sharks), 12 Jean de Villiers (Stormers), 13 Jaco Pretorius (Lions), 14 Tonderai Chavhanga (Stormers), 15 Conrad Jantjes (Stormers).

Match of the Week: To the Stormers for their second win on the road; a nifty 35-26 over the Chiefs that included another bonus point. Jean de Villiers’ men have had to endure some withering criticism and they have shown all others who might find themselves in the same position the best way to duck the snipers – start winning!

Try of the Week: To the great team effort that saw Franco van der Merwe crash over for the Lions after 14 phases against the Sharks. It came too late, but with a little more of that accuracy and patience Loffie’s boys may yet roar.

Schleppers of the Week: If Frans Ludeke and the Bulls are not in hiding could they please squirm up to the podium. A team award to the entire touring squad for tarnishing their champion status against the Reds.

Biggest turnaround in history: To the Bulls. Last year they beat the Reds 92-3. This year they lost 40-8. An 89-point loss into a 32-point victory? That’s a swing of 121 points and all credit to those long suffering Reds fans who never lost their sense of humour and chanted “we want 92!” before the game.

Were their faces red?: The Bulls that is. Before Saturday’s Chris Latham inspired rise from the ashes the Reds had gone 23 consecutive game without scoring a bonus point for four tries – from 1/4/2006, when they managed it in going down 28-36 against the Sharks. Interestingly 23 equals the “record” of the Highlanders who also went 23 games, from March 2005 to February 2007, without a bonus point for tries.

Divided loyalties: It was a wonderful moment for the Force to beat the Blues in New Zealand – coached by a Kiwi, John Mitchell, over a team coach by an Aussie, David Nucifora.

For the record: The SuperWrap’s thanks to sharp-eyed and clearly knowledgeable reader Adrian Hill from New Zealand who spotted an error which has been in the Super Rugby record for some years now – pointing out that Keegan Daniel’s “record” try in 16 seconds against the Blues was in fact not a record at all. Adrian, or “Gomma” as he would be known if he was a Zimbo, e-mailed us to say that Vula Maimuri scored a try in 12 seconds for the Highlanders against the Crusaders (of all teams!) on May 12, 2001. So to the archives we went, pulled the tape of the match, and there it was. Long kick-off by the Highlanders, charge-down of a clearance by Andrew Mehrtens and a try by Maimuri in 12 seconds. Thanks for helping us set the record straight Adrian, but sorry, we can’t change the result of the World Cup!

New nickname: For referee Willie Roos. “Kanga.”

Who ate all the pies? A toss-up between the butts of Piri Weepu and Ricky Januarie.

Quote of the Week I: “It must be nice not to hang out with one of those silly backs. Hookers to the left and hookers to the right.” – Phil Kearns to Greg Clark welcoming new Aussie comments man Brendon Cannon.

Quote of the Week II: “Well the TJs stayed off the field this time.” – Schalk Burger after Matthew Cooper had teased him about not having any “chats” with the referee.

Quote of the Week III: “It scares me how quickly we have devalued forward play. The breakdown has become ridiculous. The biggest problem is they took rucking away from the game so that now we have a free-for-all with hands on the ball." – former All Black Josh Kronfeld.

Quote of the Week IV: “The blatant cleaning up of the game has sadly transformed rugby into a limp pat-a-cake exercise. Rugby has become soft.” – Veteran Australian rugby writer Greg Growden in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Marshall: Boks true test for Wales

Ryan| keo.co.za| March 18th, 2008

Former All Black scrumhalf Justin Marshall says Wales’ progress must be judged in their series against the Springboks.

Marshall, now with Welsh outfit Ospreys, praised Wales for the emphatic manner in which they secured the Six Nations title. He was also liberal in his praise of new coach Warren Gatland, but cautioned that the Springboks could give them a reality check on their mid-year tour.

“Wales under Warren Gatland look a lot less rudderless than last year, they have direction and purpose,” Marshall wrote in his column in The Independent. “But I’d say - and from the noises he has made - Gatland realises that the standard of the Six Nations has been pretty average. Wales go to South Africa in the summer, then in the autumn they play the Tri-Nations [teams], which will be the true test.”

Meanwhile, speculation linking Gatland to the coaching job for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 2009 is increasing after his success with Wales. “If there’s a chance to get involved at some level that would be a huge honour but I have to make sure I don’t neglect Wales,” Gatland told BBC.

“I’m not going to get ahead of myself - in the past other coaches have been involved with the Lions and haven’t made their own job with their own nation the number one priority. The Lions take up a lot of time and there’s a lot of politics involved in picking the right team.”

Gatland said he would certainly want his defensive coach Shaun Edwards to be part of the Lions coaching staff should he get the job, and Edwards confirmed that he would be interested.

“I think Warren would definitely go if asked and I’m sure he’d do a very good job,” Edwards said. “I’d like to put my hat in the ring - but not as a head coach.”