For many All Blacks supporters, the controversial finish to the second Test between the Wallabies and the British and Irish Lions in Melbourne will have brought back bad memories from eight years ago when New Zealand were denied a chance for a series victory against the tourists.
On Saturday, Hugo Keenan’s last-gasp try for the Lions at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, clinched an enthralling Test 29-26 and, with it, the series.
It preceded a relatively brief examination by the match officials of a ruck cleanout by Lions loose forward Jac Morgan against Wallabies hooker Carlo Tizzano in the build-up to the score.
Video footage shows Morgan making contact with the back of Tizzano’s head and neck in the act of clearing him off the ball – an offence according to the laws of the game (and specifically law 9.20 as mentioned by Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt afterwards), but not according to the officials in this case.
Law 9.20 says a player must not:
(a) … charge into a ruck or maul. Charging includes any contact made without binding onto another player in the ruck or maul
(b) … make contact with an opponent above the line of the shoulders.
The sanction is a penalty.
As many have said, the decision has made a mockery of World Rugby’s push for player safety as far as head injuries are concerned.
Critics would be right to point out that such breakdown collisions frequently occur during Tests.
A counter argument is that few breakdowns are looked at in such slow-motion detail showing the effects of such collisions (in this case Tizzano’s head being rocked backwards by the contact of Morgan’s shoulder).
The upshot is that, according to the laws of the game (and the modern-day hard line on head contact), the collision was a penalty offence at least and one that may have been accompanied by a yellow card for Morgan.
Indeed, All Blacks lock Brodie Retallick was red carded for a similar offence in a Test against Japan in Tokyo in 2022 and was banned for two weeks.
The difference in Retallick’s case was that he failed to attempt to wrap an arm before making contact with his opponent’s head. He also had more time than Morgan to adjust to the collision as his opponent had clearly won the race to the ball.
The bottom line, though, is that the offences resulted in the same head contact against a defenceless opponent who could not see the collision coming.
Head contact in the modern game is considered foul play — whether intentional or not — so it's difficult to understand what made the Morgan incident different in the eyes of the officials.
For further context, contact with the back of an opponent’s head is illegal in combat sports such as boxing and mixed martial arts due to the risk to the spinal cord and brain stem.
The incident overshadowed a magnificent performance from the Wallabies and a hugely entertaining Test, and, as mentioned, would have left a sour taste for All Blacks fans still fuming about the finish of the third and deciding Test of the Lions series at Eden Park in 2017.
In that case, referee Romain Poite awarded the All Blacks, who were chasing a game tied 15-all, a last-minute penalty for a clear offside at a kick re-start and a chance to win the Test and seal the series.
However, after an intervention from assistant referee Jerome Garces, Poite was persuaded to change the sanction to a scrum for an “accidental offside”, a decision which bewildered many, including skipper Kieran Read and the All Blacks coaches.
Head coach Steve Hansen never publicly criticised the officials, saying: "If we had taken the opportunities, we would have won.
"It was an average way for it to finish but that's sport sometimes. We've just got to accept that and move on and get better at what we're trying to do.
"I said [after the game], as young people, we were always taught to respect the referee and play to what he sees and that's what we'll do. We had plenty of chances to win the game ourselves."
Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh was not as forgiving.
"Joe's comments were 100% aligned with mine as a CEO and a former Wallaby," Waugh told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"Our position on that particular decision is consistent to what Joe outlined in his analysis of that last breakdown.
"Clearly, there'll be the usual process, which is what happens after every Test match, and we'll certainly be looking for a level of accountability from World Rugby over the next period of time."
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