The dramatic finish to England’s 31-24 Nations Championship victory over Argentina has reignited rugby’s long-running debate over the role of the Television Match Official (TMO), with former referee Nigel Owens’ previous comments on the issue once again proving particularly relevant.
The closing stages in Santiago del Estero were dominated by another lengthy TMO review after Argentina thought they had scored a late try. Following several minutes of deliberation, the score was ruled out, prompting angry scenes inside the stadium as supporters vented their frustration.
The extended stoppages also drew criticism from viewers, with many questioning whether the sport’s pursuit of complete accuracy is coming at the expense of the spectacle.
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Owens’ warning
Although Owens was not commenting specifically on the England-Argentina clash, the former World Rugby referee has previously argued that rugby has become too focused on achieving perfection.
“We should aim for good performances that facilitate good games. In my opinion, perfect has become the enemy of the good because people are striving for a standard that is unachievable. A frustrating over-reliance on the TMO is one result of this fear of getting things wrong.”
Owens believes referees are under more pressure than ever before, making officials increasingly reluctant to trust their instincts without video intervention.
“Pressure is being exerted on referees by spectators, social media users, coaches, players, performance reviewers and referee managers. That is a lot of people scrutinising everything.”
He concluded with a plea for rugby to simplify its approach.
“I think we need to take a step back and make sure we pick up the things that matter.”
Other law changes Nigel supports:
1. World Rugby must create one global standard of officiating
Owens believes one of rugby’s biggest issues is the lack of consistency between competitions, particularly those played in the northern and southern hemispheres. While he accepts different tournaments have different styles, he says international rugby should be officiated under the same interpretations wherever matches are played.
“World Rugby has to make sure everyone’s aligned and consistent, no matter what tournaments the teams play in outside the international window.”
“There will always be a slight variation, I think, in terms of how the two hemispheres want to referee the game.”
He added that consistency should be one of World Rugby’s biggest priorities as officials from different competitions continue to referee Test matches throughout the Nations Championship.
2. Introduce a more consistent approach to foul play
Owens believes supporters and players have been left confused by inconsistent decisions surrounding dangerous play, particularly when incidents are reviewed by the bunker.
He wants referees to apply the laws more consistently so identical offences receive identical punishments.
“One of the big things I’d like to see from referees is a bit of consistency around foul play, especially if it’s sent to the bunker.”
“During the Six Nations… we did maybe see a lack of consistency around the sanctions for foul play. Something that was a clear red card in some games wasn’t given in others.”
3. Scrap the 20-minute red card
One of Owens’ strongest opinions remains his opposition to the 20-minute red card.
While the law has been backed by several southern hemisphere nations, he believes a player guilty of serious foul play should not be replaced after 20 minutes.
“For me, a straight red should also be a full red. Not a 20-minute red card.”
“There’s still some work to be done on that area.”
