Leinster v La Rochelle: We’re in for a final of epic proportions, but who will referee it?

There were no Toulouse complaints about Wayne Barnes. Neither coach Ugo Mola nor captain Antoine Dupont have publicly vented their spleens, and quite right too. Social media – what a quaint name for venomous tweets and texts – is, of course, having a field day, but Barnes knows that is an occupational hazard.

It was far from a vintage performance from the referee, but he didn’t affect the result one bit. Toulouse were thrashed, shipping a total of 41 points, including 28 when they were reduced to 14 due to yellow cards. When Jason Jenkins ran in for Leinster’s last try it seemed that the men from France’s Pink City had hoisted a white flag.

Mola did reference Andrew Porter’s tip tackle on Juan Cruz Mallia, which inexplicably was not reviewed. It was poor officiating, the prop should have been kicking his heels in the sin bin, giving Toulouse their own opportunity to play against 14.

Porter is something of an enigma, being both a most valuable member of the team, and also a potential liability. Referees do not target players, but they will be aware of Porter’s propensity for giving away penalties, although on Saturday even the television match official (TMO) was silent.

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On the other hand, the yellow card for a deliberate knock-on by Tomas Ramos was given without hesitation. I found it a harsh call, the player’s hand was facing upwards, in a position to attempt to catch the ball. It went badly wrong, but nonetheless, it looked like a reasonable reason for mitigation.

The other Toulouse yellow, for dangerous head contact on Josh van der Flier by Rodrigue Neti, should have seen red, but Barnes dialled it down, same as he did with Uini Atonio when Ireland played France. In the proposed scheme of things, the card would be reviewed by the TMO to see if there was merit for an upgrade. If this sees the light of day for the World Cup, the TMOs will also need upgrading. It’s a hard ask for the current group to make what will be the most critical of decisions.

The accuracy of Barnes around the breakdown, for me, was below par, and that is an unfortunate referee trend right now. In open play, an offside penalty against Toulouse, when Hugo Keenan misfired a clearance, was wrong. Barnes, at first, called it correctly, but then altered his decision, apparently on the intervention of his assistant.

With more than 100 test matches, and four World Cups to date, why on Earth would the referee acquiesce to his assistant? Don’t look to me for an answer, I haven’t got one.

[ La Rochelle showdown a fitting final hurdle for Leinster ]

In Bordeaux, La Rochelle killed off Exeter by half-time. South African Jaco Peyper was in charge, and Ronan O’Gara’s team had four tries on the board, leading 26-7, when the referee brought the half to a close. Peyper was lenient at the breakdown, Exeter going off their feet quite a bit, and he denied La Rochelle a penalty try for a collapsed maul, which nonetheless saw him give a yellow card to Exeter.

The speed of thought by La Rochelle, their massive power and terrific offloading makes them formidable opponents. We’re in for a final of epic proportions.

But who will referee it? Tony Spreadbury, the European referee manager, will be scratching his head. The French teams have probably had enough of what they term “arbitres britanniques” (British referees) but the options for Spreadbury are limited.

If we aspire to competition neutrality, a URC referee should not officiate the final because Leinster are in it. That would rule out Peyper, leaving only an Englishman, or Nika Amashukeli who is refereeing very well. But it is probably too soon for the Georgian, an appointment of this magnitude presents greater difficulty than many international matches.

[ Owen Doyle: Dearth of refereeing talent in three countries a problem for the URC ]

So, it looks like another “britannique” – perhaps Luke Pearce, with Amashukeli slotting into the Challenge Cup final?

I’ll finish with an incident from the Glasgow v Scarlets Challenge Cup semi-final which should have seen a penalty try and yellow card awarded by Mathieu Raynal when a Glasgow defender deliberately knocked the ball forward, killing off a huge Scarlets overlap, just five metres out.

The defender then dived after the ball, touching it with his hand as it hit the ground. Because of this Raynal decreed it a genuine attempt to catch the ball and gave a scrum to Scarlets. The entente cordiale which has always existed between the Welsh and the French dissipated in an instant.

[ Leinster’s URC quarter-final against Sharks to be played at reduced capacity Aviva ]

The law could not be clearer – if a player intentionally knocks the ball forward, it is a penalty kick. If he subsequently manages to run after the ball and touch or catch it, that has no relevance. If the player is trying to catch the ball, it is not judged intentional if he knocks it forward, as we well know.

It’s not hard to imagine the chaos all over the pitch if Raynal’s interpretation was deemed correct. It was a poor call and at this level, really should not happen.