Schoolboy assaults referee – Blaming the ref gone too far?
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Chris de Beer lying unconscious after being knocked out by a player from Hoërshool Hans Strijdom. Photo via www.volksblad.com
Morgan Piek – “Blaming the referee” for losing a game has become a huge part of South African rugby in recent years. The most famous of which is blaming Bryce Lawrence for South Africa’s “early” exit in the 2011 IRB Rugby World Cup played in New Zealand last year. I will say that Bryce had a shocker and he was a huge influence on the game, but for a team to play with 80% of the possession and still lose is not the referees fault. The Springboks did have the lead will 11 minutes left on the clock when Danie Rossouw idiotically pulled a man down in the lineout and conceded a penalty which James O’Connor converted to knock the Boks out of the World Cup…Correct call Bryce!
What amazes me the most is the fact that people pick out one incident in which they will blame the referee for a loss their side suffered. For me to say referees have flawless games would be very naïve and presumptuous. They do make mistakes – just like each and every single one of us do at work. We are all human after all. Unlike the majority of us, these referees get one look at the action, they don’t have the luxury of replays.
With the referees being involved in the game more than any single player on the field, mistakes are bound to happened. Former Sharks and Springboks coach Ian McIntosh was once famously quoted for saying “Play the game in such a way that the referee cannot influence the result”.
The fast pace at which rugby gets played these days means that more mistakes get made. Last year I interviewed South African referee Jaco Peyper. In this interview he mentioned to me that they are expected to make a substantial amount of calls and they get lambasted for one or two incorrect calls. Yet no mention ever gets made when they make a brilliant call. Brilliant calls which do in fact happen more often than one thinks.
I never really get to watch a rugby game at a braai or with friends, due to me covering a tremendous amount of games and viewing it out of a slightly different point-of-view. My biggest concern is however, on the rare occasion I do get to watch a game with other people, I’m absolutely flabbergasted when I hear the amount of criticism hurled towards the referees.
This morning I was stunned when I opened the paper and read an article on page 2 penned by the renowned rugby writer J.J. Harmse. Harmse wrote of referee Chris de Beer of the Blue Bulls Referees Association who was assaulted by a player from Hoërskool Hans Strijdom in Mookgophang (Naboomspruit) during the “Hansie-Week”.
The youngster in question has subsequently been banned from all rugby for the rest of the year. He is up for a charge of assault and there is a possibility that there will be a civil case against him as well.
Chris de Beer managed to recover enough to whistle the final game after he was knocked out cold by the schoolboy. The schoolboy in question received a red card with about two minutes remaining of the clock for head-butting an opposing player. After the game, de Beer approached the kid to confirm his number in order to write his report on the game. Chris de Beer recalled this incident by saying “Die seun het my voor die bors gegryp en vir my gesê ek het lekker k*k geblaas en my met die kop teen die wang geslaan”.
This kind of incident is totally unacceptable and brings rugby in South Africa to shame. I believe banning the kid from rugby for the remainder of the year is not punishment enough. What stops this kid from assaulting someone on the rugby field at varsity or in club rugby and possibly even killing a person in the process? There have been numerous reports of this in South Africa in recent years.
The big question is: Where did this youngster learn this kind of aggressive behaviour? One can only assume it stems from watching games on the tele with his friends or family and being exposed to aggressive behaviour hurled towards the referee.
We as South Africans have to remember, whether or not the referee is officiating and School Rugby or a Super Rugby, the man with whistle actually knows the rules of the game better than the “Average Joe” sitting in the stands or in front of his tele.
These men are professional and have all done extensive courses to reach their respective levels of refereeing. It has to be respected as much as the players we watch are respected. Just imagine how chaotic a game of rugby would be if there were no referees.
Let us all make an effort to eliminate this nasty side of rugby – it is uncalled for and has to be stopped before “Our Beautiful Game” gets tarnished.
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50 Responses to Schoolboy assaults referee – Blaming the ref gone too far?
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Nee ! daai seun was reg wat hy gedun het… hy mut opstaan vir sy tjommie! With big arms comes big responsibility
I believe the 1 year ban is fair, for a schoolboy. However once the 1 year ban is up, there should be a parole system to monitor such serious offenders. They need to be put on notice that if they should re- offend with such acts of violence whether they are committed on the field or off the field, it will lead to a lifetime ban.
The school and the rugby program should also be investigated.
Rory if you so clever take up the whistle, I will even run line for you the same way the coaches do they do, just stand in the middle with a flag in their hand and shout orders to their boys. It is very easy when you only have to watch for one team. I dare you to ref an U/14 match without linesman the same way these junior referees have to do and 90% of the time they are the same age as the people they ref.
Theserugby players cant string two passes together and you looking at the ref, I will bet that they cannot catch an up and under without knocking on but we blame the ref. Get educated get a LAW book download one off the IRB website.
I see it countless time , “ref off side” when he is playing advantage because the chirpers do not know their laws.
Unfortunately there is a lack of control because of too many administrative bodies getting involved. Here we have the refs union, the provincial union, the school body, etc, etc. In the mean time the victim is good old fashioned rugby. We also have umpteen people on these blogs who believe they know more than everyone else. No I do not know all the rules of rugby and constantly check and double check what is happening. What I do know is that rugby can be a beautiful game, where boys (and men) can learn about team work, camaraderie and sportsmanship, playing rugby that I can be proud to be associated with.
I agree with this article in that so many people shout things like “Hey ref, you’re missing a good game” or “Common ref that was a …..” How many of these ‘experts’ have taken up a whistle, attended ref training and had the guts to ref a game? Or stood up from their chairs, couches, etc and coached a team for a change – making a positive contribution to the sport.
There are plenty of areas that need attention in rugby so stop being part of the problem or even highlighting the problems and get involved in become part of the solution … for the good of the game.
Tiana Oosthuizen I honestly know where you all come from regarding the mismanagement of games. I have been there. Believe me and yes i know exactly how frustrated you are. The only thing that will rectify the whole matter is that a report regarding what happened must be forwarded to the relative union but you cannot be emotional about the issue and you have to have concrete facts in other words a recorded copy of the match. This must be forwarded to the Correct administrators of the relative union. It is unfortunately a process but the correct one to follow.
In regards to the Valke Referees. They are the Union Refs that I mentioned regarding the massive work that's been put in on their progress. After all their weekend workshops as well as practical sessions they put in has worked. This was evident in al the pre season matches I visited this year.
But again the general public cannot go around and criticize the referees as they are not on the playing field and in the same position.
Rather let by gone's be by gone's but if anything must come of this follow the correct paths.
Louis Boshoff Thank you Louis, for a moment there I thought no one was aware of the outrageous acts done on this tournaments, I am appauled by this whole situation especially on this tournament specifically. It is absolutely shocking how our youth players are treated by referees on fields, and my only question remains when is it ever going to end??? Our youth team has fallen victim to terrible refs – mostly Blue Bull refs unfortunately and also Valke Refs unfortunately, and everytime we questioned the decisions AFTER a game – just to make sure we perhaps did not understand the rule correctly – we were coldly told that if we didn't like how they do it, we can take the whistle…welll HELL YEAH we would gladly take the whistle if it means a game in wich ALL rules are applied fairly to BOTH sides…my stand was always, if I take a loss, I want to take it fairly…not thanks to an incompetent referee…I know of MANY stories where referees were waited for by spectators outside the gamegrounds to be dealt with…and no I do not support this, but when is Unions going to realise they are doing more harm than good to the sport with their attitude…ESPECIALLY with out youth games…
I must admit I do not support this childs behaviour at all but have to admit that the refereeing is really of poor standard over the last matches I have seen over the last 3 years on school boy level.
I have fortunately have video recording of games and when a referee and his two linesman with qualified communication systems strapped to them cannot pickup offsides, forward passes, hands in the ruck then you cannot blame people from becoming unhappy but I condemn aggressive behaviour on the field towards the ref.
I sat next to a field against Monnas and told the ref the opponents are sealing the ball and not bridging with the their heads up and this is penalisable. His remark was this is only applicable in training how poor?
Boksmart says High school yellow cards for School level is 5 min penalisable not 10 minutes, now a Blue bull referee decides we do it different in Pretoria so that will be the rule 10 minutes where the Valke, Leopards, Pumas all apply the 5 minute rule.
I always say do you support rugby or are you a knowledgable on rugby. I sit with the IRB rules and Boksmart videos on my phone.
The role of the Captain and coach to understand the rules and to allow the captain to stop the referee and question a decision for clarity is very important. We are not training captains correctly to stay cool.
I believe coaches should have the benefit of questioning the referee at half time on decisions taken.
South Africa in general have been on the bad end of poor refereeing decisions and this is boiling over to our children, Monkey see monkey do. Daddy blames ref so son does the same as well. Easy escape goat.
SOUTH AFRICA BLAME CULTURE we want to blame everyone except ourselves.
But referees need to come under more strict evaluation.
Dave van Dyk I do agree with you Dave, but only to an extend…what I am saying is, why can a referee be allowed to abuse a player????surely the temacaptain have a right to enquire about a decision, to my knowledge and first hand experience most referees do not do that, they may abuse a player , they may decide who they want to listen to or not regardless of the fact that the infringement was so obviously wrongly handled…they may they may they may…yes bad behaviour has no place in rugby, but that goes both ways, if a referee wants respect from the teams on the field surely he must remember that yes he has two eyes and can only see what he can see, but to bluntly do things as had happened on this tour and in previous games is also unacceptable. Yes play the ref's game, so we all coach, but when is enough enough on the other side of the fence as well???? Good behaviour is not only the players coaches and team managers' responsibility, it is also the responsibility of our officials…we also present material in an enquiry and so often we are dismissed for the simple reason that our Union is played blatantly because of the shortage of good referees…and if you do implicate a referee by such means, the next time he officiates your game you are even more exploited by the very same person…how fair is that towards Mac's quote…
If you dig a little deeper you’ll probably find an overly competitive father, compensating for his own failures by pushing his son too hard. Kid should be charged for assault, and banned for at least 2 years from playing rugby. Expulsion from school absolutely mandatory.
I cannot even wonder how SA rugby will even benefit from such a player. The year ban is not enough if they are insisting on bringing new recruits into the referees system. This is a massive negative.
I honestly believe the school needs to be taken to task for this young man’s action in their colours. They are deserving of a suspension of some sort, from participating in rugby activities.
as for the kid, He clearly isnt fit enough to play the game if he can conduct himself in that manner. He should rather focus on something else in his life, not rugby. SARU needs to nip this behavior in the bud. A life ban is appropriate.
Chris needs to get the full might of the law to descend on this runt! He deserves it!
I have never seen a referee without his Boksmart card, and I have witnessed 16 year old referees been verbally abused on U/14 rugby matches , these boys can't even catch a ball but it is the referees fault. This ref blame has become a cancer in SA rugby, asking for two refs is a joke, try get referees for games, there are none. Nobody wants to be a referee the learning process is way too difficult. It is much easier to be armchair critics.
Maak voorbeeld van hom. Belaglike optrede.Ek wonder wat sou Dok Craven van so iets gedink het.
This kid already has a problem…headbutting on AND off the field…?? Ban him for life. finish en klaar.
Reinhardt Terblanche nee Rynhard die speler was van Hans Strydon HS die Skeidsregter was van die Bulle
Suzette Kotze dankie Suzette, dis flippen harde werk tussen die manne maar ons jeug word net teveel keer benadeel deur sulke selfsugtige mense…
Louis Boshoff I feel your despair. But there are people you can contact and something should be done. This is where the administrators of this game of ours come in. Contact the Bulls HQ and they should direct you to the correct people. They get paid to do this job. Unfortunately I am not within your union and cannot assist. But if you want to pursue this matter then you must make sure you have concrete evidence. Otherwise you will have no case.
What we do and what I tell my coaches is that they have a right to complain about a referee but it should not be in a negative way and they should have visual evidence as we cannot go on hearsay. This has definitely worked for us. Our union over the past year have drilled the referees and shaped them into the match officials they are today. The tests and workshops they have completed has really meant a lot to our region. There has definitely been a changeover.
Maybe the investment on the Match officials would help your region as well. I am sure they educate their match officials but do they monitor their progress and consistently asses them? I cannot answer this. They do in my region. And the assessors are extremely critical on the refs. And through this process our refs have become better. They still make mistakes but then again they are human by contrary belief LOL. There are solutions for you though. Just follow the correct procedures.
But again I come back to the issue at hand. What happened should not have escalated to the extend that it did. At no point is any player allowed to verbally or physically attack anyone. It goes against everything our game means and stands for and should not be tolerated. Hence the punishment handed down to the individual is justified.
I however again echo that this is a Union matter and that you guys must take it up with the administrators. And quickly as well. The longer you wait the quicker people will forget about it.
Dave I was at this tournament for one day and let me tell you one thing I havent seen so many bad calls in the only three games I manage to watch on the last day including the game in question. I am a Hans Strijdom old boy and the boy in question had no previous disiplinary record or issues. To make a boy crack like this is testament on how bad this ref was. Not that what he has done is correct in any sence. If you had anything to do with rugby in your life you will know that to complain about a ref is as good as to piss against the wind. You will achieve nothing except getting wet in the face. We at club level are complaining year after year after year about the same useless refs but they are back year after year. And players never go on the field of play thinking before the game start that they are going to fight with an opponent it is normally poor refs that frustrate the players into loosing their cool on the field. Come and watch club rugby in Limpopo and you will be shocked. Hope you will reply on my views
The boy can be banned for however long- WHO CARES, but the referee must not lets this lie, take the snotkop and his father to court, it will be a good precedent against other hooligans to realise that no bad deed goes unpunished, the father agreed with the punishment handed out to the referee then let him stand by his delinquent son in court and take the punishment. The people who condone this kind of behaviour should take note, maybe one day it could be your son or daughter on the end of the head butt of a moron like this.
Oswin you are an idiot for believing that ref’s should be perfect. Human error is always there. Name 1 person who is perfect and then I will accept your rediculous comment.
If ref’s can’t make mistakes as professionals then by your comments the same should be said about players. They too chose to play rugby as pro’s and by your logic shouldn’t make mistakes. If this were to happen then the ref wouldn’t be needed. Think about it!
This kid should be banned for more then a year and let’s hope the assault charges stick and maybe make an example of him, just like Hansie was all those years ago.
As jy so se Piet.
I agree with rudi on more should be done than just punish the kid. I am in no way condoning what the kid did but, being a rugby player myself I know what the kid felt. I’ve played in many matches where the ref has blown the game away or has been intimidated to blow positively for one or the other team. Something should be done about the quality of refs at school and at club level. By experiencing bad matches or leagues like this many players become discouraged from playing rugby and don’t enjoy it at all. And why is it that only high profile matches or tournaments enjoy better skilled refs and linesmen? It is in no way right what the kid did but we should look from the otherside of the whistle too and our provinsial or regional rugby bodies should step up and ficx the problems from the lowest level.
reggeraai ou ray, province ouens sal mos nooit sonde doenni. Ammal net kerkmense
Dis aanranding en ek hoop,hy word so aangekla. Dis heeltemal belaglik om so op te tree. Maak voorbeeld van hom! ” you only coose your actions but you can’t choose the consequences. The follow regardless “
i think that banning the boy for the year is appropriate, this incident happened in the heat of the moment. banning someone for life, for an adolescent error is unfair. while one cant expect the ref to see every thing, to not attribute any blame is just as naive. by tammy
I totally agree with this article. This incident has a far deeper root than bad schoolboy manners. But, as eye-witness to this incident, I have to correct a few errors in the re-telling. It was not the same player that received the red card and assaulted the ref. The player that received the red card was waiting behind the poles, as he should, when the incident happened. Secondly, when the schoolboy told the ref that he officiated “kak”, the ref swore at the player and it was after this that the emotions got to much for the player. Understand me correctly, I truly believe this player should be banned for life. It is a disgusting step over the line towards thuggery, but please report the correct details.
Kan ek raai? Blou Bul?
This happened on my U19 team, and he was banned for life from the USARFU.
Go Tania, dis wonderlik wat jy doen! Laat di vlam nooit verflou.
I agree. Referees should be able to produce their competency certificates. A few weeks ago a dislexic referee sent off the nr 12 instead of the nr 21. He was the laughing stock at the event and THAT is also not good for the sport.
Last year a similar incident happened in the Western Cape. This calls for more than punishment of the player – This calls for a change in the Rugby refereeing system.
It is long overdue that rugby must follow suit and introduce multiple referees on the field. The existing TMO, with a bird’s eye view, should have more control. The game has progressivley become quicker and that is the reason why ice hockey and tennis have more than one referee. Other sports like AFL are very technical (similar to rugby set pieces) and therefore also require more than one referee.
With multiple referees on the field, rugby players and – supporters would far easier accept calls as they are then not unilaterally taken. Collusion is so much more difficult to prove as well and therefore the calls would be accepted by all.
ban him for life, klein snotkop!
Tiana Oosthuizen thanks for your views, I have not been there myself no but some of our local shools were and their coaches fall under me. But the issue is about the misconduct of a player. As I mentioned it starts at home and then the team discipline. I have been coaching since '93 and never have I condoned or tolerated fighting on the field of play and just once in all my career did one player receive a red card. (Tackle situation) All I say is, it starts with the coaching – not saying that this player's coach was bad or not doing his job. All I say is, that if the player was shown what discipline was all about in our game and this from an early age this incident would never have happened. Another aspect to look is is does the player use any banned substance as this could also be a factor …… far too many questions. But we cannot blame the referee. And no one has the right to take matters in their own hand. And any referee abuse must not be tolerated, does not matter how bad he officiated the game.That is what administrators are for and there are paths that can be followed. And the best is use the the technology that is available. I record every match and use this evidence should I need to. To echo Morgan Piek: Former Sharks and Springboks coach Ian McIntosh was once famously quoted for saying “Play the game in such a way that the referee cannot influence the result”. Maccy said it all……….
Michael Muller Thank you for the compliment – I am very passionate about my boys and my club, it was the first time in our history that a woman was elected chairperson, and so much wrong is done out there to our youth…if I can make difference in one boy's life I have done my job as administrator and coach…my son is playing at under 9 level and I love to watch him play, he is a very good player with natural talent..had to learn to make the emotional connection at the right time and to not let that influence the proffetional connection also at the right time…got that right now at least
every wrong decision I make as administrator now will affect his future and also that of his fellow players…I also wish we had a lot more fighters on grass root level it would make rugby so much better
I love your passion for the game, and wish that more people like you were involved at grass roots level. It will take time….
I also agree with you on the behaviour of parents and supporters next to the fields…we had an incident where a parent was given a red card by a referee last year, and the game did not continue before this parent was removed from the premises…this was done in an effort to show parents and supporters that we will not tolerate this behaviour – sofar it proved to be efficient enough a tactic because we have not yet had such an incident on our fields…I often feel so bad for the child who has to go home to such parent after a game…I often wonder if this idiot of a dad or mother ever apologises to this player…
Michael Muller Then you are a very lucky supporter and coach…I invite you to come up to our region and watch one game with me…it is shocking ( having said that I would expect nothing less from your refs… I am a very big Stormers supporter
)On our side referees gets paid for every game they officiate and then still do not what they are supposed to do…even with their evaluators sitting in…I feel this is unaccpetable…they get away with murder yet the referees that do not officiate first league games do a much better job but often resign as officials because they never get the oportunity to officiate on that level…it is really a matter of consistency on all levels and sadly this so often causes incidents like this witch we really do not need on and off our rugby fields
Tiana Oosthuizen, sadly I cannot be there so I am not really able to comment on that tournament. I watch schools rugby religiously, having coached at schools level, and I am appalled at the behaviour of some parents – and coaches – at the side of the field. In Cape Town, ALL refs are qualified, and do this voluntarily on Saturday mornings. No way would I take the abuse they take, for fun.
No referee that I have ever encounteres has ever blown a game crookedly on purpose – some are less competent than others, as in all walks of life.
I agree David…I fully agree…Unions forget that it is our clubs and schools that is feeding them with brilliant players but they do nothing to assist us on club and school level…yet the minute you produce excellent results – they arrive in style ready to take all the glory for their brilliant youth players…they do not help you at club level with funding, nor development nor coaching development…with nothing, you often get players that has no idea of how to pass a ball and you develop that player to such extend that he is elected into the Provincial Club Teams where they excell even further…we are proud coaches on club and school level and pride ourselves in our work but we often get left behind by our Unions…That is why we have the so called social players from the b-d teams in our midst…they are often the elite player and not the other way around…
This is quite an interesting topic… It depends on several factors, but most importantly from where you look at it. After a whole game of interesting calls, I felt the Danie Russow call in the world cup was not correct. But I wanted the boks to win… With regard to this school boy, he should be locked up. If he wishes to take the law into his own hands (after transgressing during the game), he should bear the consequences of his actions. But in the new SA, there is no such thing. Punishment is not just and parties with lots of money or a contact somewhere, usually get off with just a warning. Where is the fairness in that? It is about time that everybody in SA start to own up, take responsibility and lead by example. Only then, things will change for the better, on and off the field.
In most instances the coach do not misbehave next to the field – we are bound by strict rules from our Unions etc, including Boksmart and Saru…Have you been to this tournament??? There has been numerous complaints about the manner referees handled these games…numerous…what have been done about that ???? This was not the only team that was affected believe me…yes I agree play the game according to its laws and code of conduct…and yes the boys' behaviour is unacceptable, but the matter can only be rectified if EVERY aspect is looked at…and in this case it is not
Then I suggest our referees also get a bit of more frequent refresher training to assist them in managing a game better. Yes you cannot see everything but t least be consistent and impartial…Unfortunately there was a lot of complaints about referee's consistency during the Hansie week, and also along the likes of other tournaments held in our youth circles…and not even only youth circles , also in the likes of club rugby in SA, it is sometime shocking to see first league referees officiatlng matches in the manner they do…if you expect dicipline from players I would say the same goes for our officials…SOME OF THEM CANNOT EVEN PRODUCE THEIR BOKSMART QUALIFICATIONS at club matches…and they get away with things like that, or they make a call that a clearly concussed player can continue playing…or they do not know their rules int he context of play…do yourself a favour and come sit next to a field when a game like this is played…if SANZAR can enforce the new panel to evaluate referees on consistency I feel it should cascade down to all levels…I condemn what has happened, but I beg of SARU to look into this matter to ensure that referees are better trained and evaluated on all levels not only curry cup level and up, we produce those players from our clubs at groundlevel and often have to bear the wrath of incompetent referees…If you speak to most supporters, you will learn that they don't watch club or school rugby any more because of incidents caused by incompetent referees and is this really what we want?
The referee has a lot of influence in a game. No mistakes are acceptable even though human errors are always there. Perfection is an attribute a referee is required to have. If you decide to be an official you must be ready for the responsibility.
This kid should be banned for life, totally totally unnaceptable he should not be afforded the priviledge of playing this wonderful game. Such thuggery is Neanderthal like!! What an idiot
Well said. Well said ! And so say all of us!
Agreed but then again……. This is not the first or last. How do we stop this from occurring again. Difficult situation this. It's happened at club level as well. Again I say that it starts with coaching as the coach holds an enormous amount of power and it's all about discipline. This is one of the pillars this game of ours is made from. If the coach misbehaves next to the field the players pick up on this and it gets filtered through on to the pitch. Hence the Good work Boksmart is doing in our rugby communities. Has the teams coach gone through Boksmart. If so what has he done about it?……
Dav, do you not think that a bit of mentoring and life-skills development could go a long way with this kid? We know nothing of his background, but perhaps he could become a worthwhile member of the rugby community… just a thought.
The lad should be banned for life. It's just a game. Heeltemal onaanvaarbaar. Dissipliene – It all starts at home & then coach…….. But too far is Too far.
I do not believe the view points regarding Bryce is justified as Bryce gets Millions doing his Job. But I agree about the referee abuse. It has to stop & the players and coaches and especially our own SA spectators must learn the rules of the game…. the rules are accessible on http://www.irblaws.com and they get updated on a yearly basis. The refs go through an enormous process to officiate matches at any level. It's just a game dammit. Just my 5c worth….
Seems to be the way with lots of sports these days. There is so much focus on elite levels of a game rather than sport being something that all can enjpy participating in.
I agree 100%… I have always maintained that in most cases if a side is good enough they should win despite one or two bad calls.
Sadly, the game is tarnished already at schoolboy level, with parental abuse from the sidelines, and unreasonable pressure on the boys to win. I am happy that my boys play the game socially in B teams rather than the high intensity A levels.