NFL Needs Officials Back Before Someone Gets Hurt

by Dugald Skene

It has been an outstanding start to the 2012 NFL season, with the first 48 fixtures throwing up more than its fair share of thrills and spills.

But the season so far has been dominated not by the plays or the touchdowns, but the officiating of the games.  The NFL is still in a lockout with the regular NFL standard officials and there doesn't seem to be any sign of the dispute being resolved until at least Week 5.

In the meantime, games are suffering for poor and lengthy decision making.  The first half of the Denver Broncos at Atlants Falcons game last Monday for example took a full 2 hours, around 45 minutes longer than usual due to the prolonged periods of review, and the sheer number of reviews required by the more inexperienced officials.

The effects of lengthy games are more tedious than any. It's the calls that are made that are wrong that are causing the real problems.  Things seemed to come to a head last night as the final play of the Packers at Seattle game came down to a 60 yard 'Hail Mary' pass from Seahawks QB Russell Wilson, lofted into the end zone in a 'hit and hope' effort.  The ball came down and appeared to be caught by defensive Packer MD Jennings, with Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate appearing to miss out as his hand came down on the ball, but not in control of it.

NFL's replacement officials have been dropping the ball in

more ways than one



The two officials on the scene gave conflicting signals, one indicating a Seahawks touchdown, one an interception. After a lengthy review and multiple replays, the score stood, and the Seahawks took the game 12-14 and relegated the Green Bay Packers to a second loss of the season.

This is probably the highest profile bad decision made so at, but there will be others.  And it seems the players are catching on to the opportunity to take liberties and play on the replacement officials inexperience at this elite level.  We've seen bad tackles and hits that have beggered belief, most notably the shocking and illegal hit on Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub by Broncos linebacker Joe Mays, who has since been fined $50,000 and suspended for only one game by the NFL, small change in reality.

With such a focus on player safety, it's contradictory that the league refuses to ban players for longer rather than fine them for committing potentially career ending tackles. Luckily, Matt Schaub got away with a cut ear and somehow only missed out on one play.

These high profile and dangerous tackles are one thing, but petulance also seems to be setting in, with lots of small scraps and fracases happening around the field with the knowledge the officials don't have the authority they are necessarily used to having to cut them out on the field of play.  Players are taking advantage of the replacement officials, and whether it be dangerous tackles, petty scraps or just bad decision making, it is harming the game and the precious reputation of the sport.

While they may be discipline players for dangerous plays, the NFL has come out and backed the decisions made by the replacement officials, but of course they would.  They can't be seen to be standing opposed to the men tasked with holding the fort while they are still at loggerheads with the people that are supposed to be on the field.

The sooner the usual officials are back, the better it will be for everyone; players, coaches and fans alike.

Non-Selection Of Fit Players Only Goes To Hurt The National Game

by Dugald Skene

Tim Visser, the Edinburgh and Scotland winger, and top try scorer in the RaboDirect Pro12 this season, confirmed on Twitter on Friday that he was not going to be playing for Edinburgh in their league clash away to European Champions Leinster in Dublin.

Visser wasn't injured, it was a decision taken by the coaching staff not to take him to Edinburgh.

It is exactly this kind of decision, however, that baffles me in any sport, not just rugby. Tim Visser represents the real strike threat in the Edinburgh back line, having scored 6 tries in 3 games, and yet it has been decided not to take him to one of the hardest places to play rugby in Europe, a place where his ability to make a difference in a game could be all the more important.

Not only this, but tough rugby tests against the likes of Leinster represent the exact sort of game to stretch players of quality in an effort to improve.

Leinster beat Edinburgh 22-16 in a hard fought game

Many see Visser as an automatic selection for Scotland in the autumn tests coming up in 6 weeks, and based on current form, rightly so.  However, I struggle to see the benefits both for Edinburgh and Scotland by not fielding a player of his quality in the big league games.  They can only go help to improve their game and strengthen their resolve in the tightest of game scenarios.

So why leave Visser out? Are Edinburgh 'saving' him in an effort to concentrate more on European competition?

This raises a deeper question that has been discussed at length in European rugby - why should all teams represented in the multinational RaboDirect automatically be eligible for the Heineken Cup, the premier European club competition?

The Welsh Rugby Union took the decision last season to only allow the 3 highest ranked teams from their 4 professional outfits in the league to qualify for the Heineken Cup. It's a start, but in my opinion, it's not enough.  I believe in the proposed system that each country represented in the league should allow half of their teams in the league to qualify, based on where they finish relative to each other in the league. This would mean that a team like Edinburgh, who quite deliberately concentrated on their run in the Heineken Cup over their aspirations in the league last season, would not have qualified this season over their rivals Glasgow Warriors who finished in the top 4 of the league.

All this means that only 2 Welsh, 2 Irish, 1 Scottish and 1 Italian team would qualify from the Rabo Direct Pro12.

It would also provide incentive for the teams competing in the league to play their best players in every game they are available in an effort to achieve European qualification.  The net effect on the league would be increased competitiveness, a resultant increase in quality and ultimately revenue for all the teams.

As the league provides the majority of players for their respective nations of Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Italy, increased competitiveness in the league would raise the standard of quality of player, and no one could deny that would ultimately benefit the national teams.

Leaving out your best players in big games when they are available to play only goes to emphasise the complacency of teams in a system that allows them to play in the biggest European competition, even if they come bottom of the league.  Something has to change, and I can only see the league and the national unions treating the Heineken Cup as an exclusive competition and restricting access to those who deserve it on merit being the way forward.