The word “oligarch” comes from the ancient Greek word “oligarkhia,” meaning, rule by a few. The modern definition is “a small group of people who have control of a government or an organisation”.
This week American senator Bernie Sanders spoke out over his concerns regarding the emergence of a few mega-wealthy individuals gaining political control in western democracies. He termed them the Western Oligarchs.
Oligarchs, the politically powerful few, are as real in the world of elite sport as they are in the orbit of Bernie Sanders.
Last November there was great hope in the rugby community that many positive new laws would be approved by World Rugby. By December it was clear that the majority of these much-needed reforms had been quashed.
In recent years highly-intelligent coaches have exploited loopholes inside the laws to provide their teams with success to the detriment of the game as a whole.
The task of every coach is to win the next game. So the coaches are blameless. It is World Rugby’s responsibility to change the laws that are being exploited to maintain the balance between forwards and backs, attack and defence, that provides the joy of playing for all.
On January 1st this year a disappointingly low number of minor law changes came into play. As senator Sanders suggested, it appears that the influence of a small group of powerful oligarchs has triumphed over the needs of the community.
The opening line of World Rugby’s new TMO Protocol says it all.
“The referee remains the lead decision-maker of the officiating team.”
In other words, the TMO is not empowered to make quick, independent decisions.
The power of the referees’ lobby inside World Rugby’s decision-making process has always been greatly underestimated by the wider rugby community. Here its work is clearly seen.
The law reform required to speed up TMO decisions is so unquestionably a no-brainer I will allow you to answer this question. Who is in the best position to review the TV footage on a crucial match-deciding try? The referee, who has been sprinting about under aerobic fatigue, pressurised under the gaze of the 65,000 plus fans and must view the replay on screen that is 30m away? Or is it a trained TMO, sitting in the TV directors box with multiple camera angles and screens, sipping a cup of tea and nibbling chocolate biscuits?
I am on the tea and biscuits.
World Rugby’s stated aim surrounding our TMOs was “to promote consistency and independence”. In reality, the decision to not empower our TMOs is all about referees maintaining power and has nothing to do with creating a better process.
Rugby League has successfully given their TMOs independence in key decision-making for several seasons. League’s TMO decision-making on tries is significantly faster than rugby’s, with zero conversations and with a high degree of accuracy. Yet rugby refuses to accept what our cousin sport has already proven.
The prime example of how hard law reformists have to work inside World Rugby can be seen in the simple law change at scrums, which now requires the defending scrumhalf to remain level with their front rowers. He is not permitted to follow the ball through the opposition scrum to harass the attacking nine.
I have stated this before in the column but the incredulous circumstances regarding the journey of this law demand repeating. After a series of horrific spinal scrum injuries, Australian schools first introduced this law across all under-19 matches in the mid-1980s.
The concept was simple. Get the ball out of the scrum as fast as possible to reduce the chance of spinal injury. The attacking team liberated the ball from the scrum faster so scrum penalties were reduced and more attacking rugby was played.
It has taken almost 40 years for this simple law change to reach World Rugby decision makers. The original schoolboys who played under this law are now approaching 60.
Before I crow too loudly, we must remember that almost 40 years since its introduction this law remains a “trial law”. Unbelievably, World Rugby’s oligarchs – who I assume are very pro-scrum penalty – require more testing. This is the perfect example of the exasperating state of affairs facing law reform within rugby.
World Rugby also rejected the proposed law that would have mauls being allowed to stop only once.
Ask yourself, which national teams do not want faster scrums? Those who benefit the most from longer scrums that have a higher chance of finishing with a penalty so they can maul the following lineout have joined forces to defeat this much-needed reform.
Mauls are a major factor in the imbalance between backs and forwards as hookers, at the back of mauls, are now three times more likely to score a try than a centre – because the ball never gets to the backs.
Countries whose national teams possess giant mauling packs do not want this advantage reduced.
Since November I cannot find a single word regarding any group at World Rugby who are reviewing the scrum laws to return them to their original intent which, the law book says: “The purpose of a scrum is to restart play with a contest for possession after a minor infringement or stoppage”.
Scrums should restart play, not create swarms of match-defining penalties, which have had the effect of metamorphosing scrums into an unmitigated calamity for backlines who are starved of possession.
At their core, scrum penalties are the foundation for the abuse of the safety laws that now allow 7-1 and 6-2 replacement benches, that discriminate against backs as coaches attempt to exploit these scrum laws to gain penalties by selecting 15 forwards and only 8 backs. A selection mixture that at the lower levels of the game is blatantly dangerous.
Nor did the November conclave create any laws regarding reform to tackle height to reduce concussions. The breakdown laws received zero mention while decisions on the 20-minute red card have been kicked down the road.
Common sense did momentarily break out with the 30-second assembly times for scrums and lineouts being approved.
According to a World Rugby statement, they want to enhance the “Fan Experience”. These are, “The moments in the game that really engage fans.” When players run with the ball in hand, rugby is the greatest spectator sport on the globe.
However, with 28 penalties a match, many from scrums, added to multiple stoppages for replacements and TMO talk-a-thons, Ball in Play times across many international matches falls below 30 minutes. None of this is enhancing the “Fan Experience”.
World Rugby’s November law conclave has laid bare the truly Herculean task that awaits new World Rugby chairman Brett Robinson and the hard-working staff around him, because it is clear that in reality, the oligarchs are in control.
