Dear World Rugby… Let the Refs Use Common Sense.

World Rugby’s Head Contact Process is supposed to bring clarity and consistency… but in this match, it did the opposite.
A referee tried to apply common sense.
The assistant referees shut it down.
And the result? A complete mess.

In this breakdown, I show exactly how the ARs influenced the referee into making the wrong decision, why Lood de Jager had 0.38 seconds to adjust, and how the ball carrier’s (Thomas Ramos) sudden dip made the tackle impossible to fix.

This isn’t about blaming one team.
It’s about a system that refuses to trust referees to make smart, human decisions in real time.

If World Rugby wants the sport to stay watchable, something has to change.

In this video, I also break down how Nika Amashukeli, acting as assistant referee, repeatedly influenced the referee into decisions that simply didn’t match what happened on the field. His calls affected both teams, and his insistence on sticking to the letter of the law stopped the referee from applying any common sense.

Referee: Angus Gardner (RA)
Assistant Referee 1: Nika Amashukeli (GRU)
Assistant Referee 2: Christophe Ridley (RFU)
TMO: Ian Tempest (RFU)
FRPO: Andrew Jackson (RFU)

Timestamps:
00:00 - Lood de Jager Red Card
03:55 - Nika Amashukeli's Mistakes
05:05 - Missed Penalty Try
06:03 - Thomas Ramos Moaning to the Referee
07:25 - Sponsorship Video

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