Tantrums and 3D specs

I'm waiting for a try, I might be here some time...

Welcome to Loose Pass - our weekly assortment of disjointed thoughts. This week we will be mostly concerning ourselves with tantrums and 3D specs...

And so toys were rapidly ejected from the pram after Saracens' unlikely winning streak came to an abrupt end. As new year predictions go, it was as straightforward as the possible onset of January after December.

It was only a matter of time before the club's limited game plan of slowing ball and kicking penalties would come a cropper, and Brendan Venter's tirade against English officialdom smacks of man who has been found out.

Yes, consistency is an issue of sorts. But refereeing is an art, not a science. And as anyone who has ever whistled a match knows, it ain't easy.

Check out this article penned by a former Test official (formerly of this parish), on the amount of information referee must process and interpret in an average game. How would you fare with this torrent of decisions? And how would you cope with criticism surrounding your 'consistency' once your day is done?

Let us consider just one area of the game: the contentious breakdown. Some refs focus primarily on whether the first arriving attacking players stay on their feet, others watch whether the defending side is slowing up the ball illegally on the deck. It is nigh impossible to police both areas simultaneously, so refs vary their priorities according to what has gone before and where they are on the pitch.

Rugby's new-found obsession with continuity has forced refs to attempt to ward off minor crimes without breaking up play, but you can't have a referee 'consistently' shouting "hands off, number x" for the entire game. Like rugby itself, dynamism is required. Soon enough the man in the middle will have to start meting out penalties. Perhaps he'll even see fit to sin-bin the England captain. These are the breaks.

Venter urged refs to prepare with the same level of analysis as coaches and players, and his words were echoed by the otherwise owl-like Shaun Edwards.

"I would encourage all referees, rather than just the conscientious ones, to prepare for games as coaches and players do, by reviewing tapes of at least one - and hopefully more - games in which each of the sides has recently played," wrote the Wasps coach in his weekly newspaper column.

But does this not run completely contrary to the whole argument about consistency? Referees have a difficult enough time without having to adapt to the styles of specific clubs.

And is this not the tail wagging the dog? It is for the team to adapt to the referee, not the referee to the team. The key to winning rugby is adaptability. Good sides can heed the repeated warnings of referees and adapt their approach in light of the changing circumstances. Teams that can't change horses in mid-stream shouldn't even be at the races.

A long and painful fall beckons if Sarries are seriously planning to wait for refs to tune into their shortwave frequency.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As an aside, it's disappointing to see how many commentators have backed Venter's outburst. One leading pundit even named the South African as his 'hero of the week' for putting the debate in the "public domain".

Do we really need it in the public domain? Referees have always been open to the approach of coaches, and they meet behind closed doors before and after every game. That we are spared the sound of coaches whining about injustice helps perpetuate the fading belief that rugby is a thugs' game played by gentlemen. If we wanted dissent, we'd watch soccer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Where do we start on England's new Elite Player Squad? We'd actually prefer not to start at all, if it's all the same to you.

Let's just say our groans over another plodding pack of forwards were briefly silenced by the RFU's assertion that "Chris Ashton has been added to the squad from the Saxons as an injury replacement for Phil Vickery".

That would add a bit of much-needed oomph, right? Sadly it seems that the speedy newcomer will be deployed on the wing, if at all.

Other than that, it appears as if Martin Johnson has called up the nation's old, weary and injured so as to free his hand to select form replacements at a later date. And if that ain't his reason, all hope is lost.

So let the debate commence. What do you make of Johnno's pick? Join the fun on our famous forum.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shares in Scottish rugby are on the up and up. Not content with taking out the Wallabies, Andy Robinson's tartan army has knocked an iconic son of Scotland off the plinth he has graced since 1924.

Yes, the famous Highland stone-putter on boxes of Scott's Porage Oats has been benched and Scots can now breakfast in the company of Chris Paterson, Ross Ford and Thom Evans.

Check out the kilted trio here, and marvel at how Paterson's trademark (and slightly sinister) left-arm salute mimics the man he has usurped. Perhaps he really did grow up eating the stuff...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you're still not afraid of Brian Moore, you soon will be. The former England hooker is busy promoting a revealing autobiography and broke off this rather disturbing interview to bicker with himself. Yes, himself.

Perhaps he's just limbering up for the Six Nations. Eddie Butler, you have been warned.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

England fans have grown accustomed to looking back through rose-tinted glasses. Now they have the chance to do it in real time.

England's Six Nations fixtures against Wales and Ireland will both be shown in 3D at cinemas, with the visit of the Welsh to Twickenham becoming the Europe's first live 3D sports broadcast.

The games will be screened at select Odeon and Cineworld cinemas across the UK. Jokes about England's one-dimensional approach to the game will not be welcome.

Compiled by Andy Jackson