Brawnybalboa, Just to clarify. The audio you hear saying I didn't see it because there's a player in the way actually is the assistant referee not the referee. That's why he says Tim which is Tim Wigglesworth the referee. So the match official did check with him on the day and they both missed it. Unfortunate, but it happens and that's why the citing procedure is so crucial.
That's fair enough and I think in that case they should amend the law. Rugby is a hugely non-inclusive game - by that I mean that for a first time watcher, it is nearly impossible to understand. The IRB have tried to change that over the years so that it becomes more entertaining meaning that you don't necessarily need a large background knowledge to watch the game, as long as people are smashing into each other at speed and running down the wing, you'll enjoy it. Grey areas like this only add to confusion for potential new fans. I don't care whether they decide that this passing issue is acceptable or not, but it needs to be clear. In the case of Sam Warburton at the weekend, the law and guidelines are clear and at least they had that to refer to to clear up any ambiguity or abuse for Rolland. Whether the law / guidelines are right or not is up for debate, but the referees need much clearer and stricter rules to operate under so that the players decide the outcome, not the referees. Rant over
You're talking about wind which is different to air resistance. Air resistance is just the force of air on an object trying to travel through it. Wind is air moving from high pressure to low pressure. So I wasn't wrong at all. You think the wind is always travelling forwards in the same direction as the player running??? Of course wind is always the reason for forward high passes. Come on, mate. »
That's simple Einstein and that is a good explanation, but the law makes no mention of relative to the player (or train!). It simply says towards the goal line is forward. If there is a bridge that the train is travelling towards, you are still jumping forward relative to it. There is no grey area. The direction of travel of the player / train is irrelevant. That's why the fixed point of the goal line is used as the reference point in the law explanation.
Which part of "towards the goal line" are you struggling to read? Where the ball travels relative to the player or not, it still is travelling towards the goal line therefore by definition making it forward. End of story. Your argument is that if they were all given as forward lots of good tries would not be allowed. That is almost certainly true, but that is not the point I was making. I don't think that every pass that travels forward should be blown, that would be nonsense - just as any player who doesn't roll away "immediately" or release the ball "immediately" at the tackle shouldn't be penalised. It's up to the referee to judge whether the player or team gained an unfair advantage from that particular act. Let's also not forget that at the top level rugby is not a sport it is an entertainment business where all that is important is getting bums on seats. Therefore, they are usually happy to allow play to go on when it's marginally forward. That's fine, but that doesn't make this video's content correct. Please also explain the difference between passed forward and travelled forward remembering the definition of the word. The only way it can work with your interpretation is that the ball initially travels away from the opponents goal line as it leaves the passers hands (passed backwards) and then curves in the air to travel forwards. What is the force acting on the ball to make this direction change? The only force is the air resistance which would only slow the ball, not change it's direction. Therefore, what you said, about there being a difference between passed forwards and travel forwards is complete nonsense and against the laws of Physics. The IRB do not want grey area in the laws, hence all the ELV's over the years. They are trying to reduce referee influence in scorelines. That is why this law is so simple, it is baffling that you cannot comprehend it.
