Here are the latest rugby headlines on Wednesday, July 20.
World Rugby referees' shake up on cards
World Rugby are considering a seismic change to the way referees are managed at Test level with the introduction of central contracts for the best officials, according to a report in The Telegraph.
An otherwise thrilling summer of top international matches was otherwise marred by confusion over a glut of red and yellow card controversies, provoking fierce debate among pundits and fans ( which you can read more about here ). The newspaper claims the central contracts plan is under consideration by the powers-that-be in a bid to "drive consistency in decision-making across high-profile tournaments such as the Six Nations and the World Cup, as well as one-off Tests".
Read more: Nigel Owens column - stop blaming referees, there are other reasons for rugby's problems
Referees are historically employed and thus paid by their individual unions, working together to review games and on fitness. World Rugby then select the best for Test matches, based upon how those officials fare in domestic and European matches.
It is thought the central contracts would instead provide training camps and feedback for the elite group of officials on a regular basis. That would include a common approach to issues such as high tackles, the scrum and breakdown. The newspaper say the referees could be seconded back to their home nation, or foreign leagues, to provide match sharpness when there are no international fixtures.
Refereeing inconsistencies provoked a strong reaction during this summer's Tests. One of them involved New Zealand prop Angus Ta’avao being red carded in the second Test versus Ireland after making head-to-head contact with Garry Ringrose while attempting a tackle. South African referee Jaco Peyper sent off Ta'avao even though many reckoned it was an accidental rugby collision.
Kiwi fans were up in arms seven days on when Ireland prop Andrew Porter made head-on-head contact with Brodie Retallick, yet English referee Wayne Barnes ruled it had been an “absorbing” tackle and didn't produce red. It later emerged Retallick had sustained a broken cheekbone, while Porter was cited before that complaint was then dismissed.
England boss Eddie Jones appears to be in favour of the plan, having previously said: "I think the great example is the World Cup. We tend to get our best rugby when referees are on the same page and they’ve got the same ideas on how to interpret various areas of the game. Maybe, in the future, World Rugby has to look towards having a centralised group of referees.”
New Zealand in crisis as Schmidt set for new role
New Zealand rugby bosses are set to award Joe Schmidt a new All Blacks coaching role amid calls for head coach Ian Foster to go following the 2-1 summer series loss to Ireland.
The All Blacks have lost four of their last five games and next go head-to-head with world champions South Africa in successive Rugby Championship games. However, reports down under suggest critics demanding Foster goes are likely to be disappointed.
There is, though, talk of a role within the set-up for former Irish boss Joe Schmidt and the possibility of Sam Cane being replaced as captain. According to Stuff, Foster met with New Zealand Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson on Tuesday and is expected to retain control for the two-Test trip to South Africa which begins on August 7. New Zealand's board is reported to have conveyed the importance of seeing results from the first five Tests of their season.
"Foster’s head won’t roll - at this stage," the media outlet insists, pointing out: "Changing the head coach so close to two Tests against the world champion Springboks would be potentially more destabilising."
They report, though, that Schmidt, currently undertaking a selector/analyst role, could become a coaching co-ordinator to "inject a new voice on the training field and at the tactical whiteboard, while New Zealand still retain Foster’s established links with players and his personnel management experience."
On the captaincy issue, it is suggested veteran lock Sam Whitelock could take on the role, with Ardie Savea another possible option.
New Zealand Rugby’s board was expected to meet overnight on Wednesday, but it’s understood no such meeting went ahead. TV crews were camped outside NZR headquarters in Wellington on Wednesday, before being told by a NZR staffer the board was not meeting to decide Foster's fate.
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Georgia plans for Six Nations and URC
Georgia are targeting a place in the United Rugby Championship and then the Six Nations as the next step after their 28-19 win over Italy at the weekend.
The country's rugby president Soso Tkemaladze is actively exploring the possibility of a Georgian club side joining an expanded URC, which would pitch them against the four Welsh teams, as well as sides from Ireland, Scotland, Italy and South Africa.
"We are looking at this and we need an offer to see if we are ready to jump," Tkemaladze is quoted as saying in an interview for the Mail. "We need something like the URC, a stronger competition."
He also knows their victory over the Azzurri, who beat Wayne Pivac's Wales in Cardiff just four months ago, will increase talk about the prospect of Georgia joining the Six Nations via promotion and relegation.
"We need to show to everybody our regular matches are all on the same level as the Italy game. Wales beat South Africa, Italy beat Wales, and Georgia beat Italy. It means Georgia is world champion! Of course the Six Nations is our dream, but to get there we need to work.
"The Six Nations want to see long-term plans. As the president I am saying we need two or three more years to make some changes. The rest is dependent on the Six Nations. It is not in our control."
But Tkemaladze insisted: "When I said to everybody about Georgia rugby’s ambitious plans, they were shocked. One day Georgia will become world champions, but to do that we need a strategy which we are working hard on."
France star Fofana retires
France star Wesley Fofana has hung up his rugby boots at the age of 34.
The 48-cap try ace has called it a day after saying his body can't cope with the demands of the professional game anymore. He won 48 caps for France between 2012-19, scoring four tries in his first four Tests and really make a mark on the sport.
Fofana was a one-club man, staying with Clermont for 15 years and appearing in three Heineken Champions Cup finals. He also won the Challenge Cup with the French outfit.
“These past years were at times hard to manage,” said Fofana in announcing his decision. “One obvious thing I noticed was that my body could no longer take the standard needed to play professional rugby now, so I have made the decision to stop my career.”
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