It's that time of the year when the Six Nations and the Super 14 spray referees all over the world, but Marius Jonker is still, for the time being, at home and he answers readers' questions.
 
1.  Name: Alistair Archibald
 
Question: Hello, Duty Ref,
 
I often hear in my club games, "He's got to let him up, ref!" It's normally when an opposition player goes haring after one of your team's kicks and dives onto the ball. Your team's chaser is close behind him and there's an ensuing tussle. Do you have to let him up? Where is the law that mentions this wording or similar? I have read law 14 but can't see it. I guess the question is what's the end of the sentence, i. e. "He's got to let him up before. . . " before what? Before tackling him? Before contesting for the ball? If he does tackle him then his infringement is 'diving on a player on the floor' and not 'not allowing the player to his feet' So long as your player stays on his feet, surely he can contest for the ball on the floor. There's no gate/tackle/offside line so difficult to infringe there. I believe the concept of 'allowing a player to his feet first' doesn't exist. It's a fabricated phrase that doesn't cover anything.
 
I'd appreciate your thoughts.

Marius Jonker: Hi Alistair.

I have no idea what you are referring to nor do I have any idea what the phrase,'' let him up'' means. I can also not see any reference to such phrase under Law 14 as described by you.

Any player off his feet may not play the ball. If you are off your feet you are out of the game.

The tackler must release the tackled player and roll away or release the player and then get up on his feet before playing the ball.

A player bringing a ball-carrier to the ground must also release this player (even though he remains on his feet) and may then play the ball providing he comes from his side.

No player may dive on another player on the ground. This is foul play. An arriving player does not have to wait for an opponent to get back on his feet before playing the ball. You may not dive on that player but you may play the ball providing you do it within law.

Regards, Marius.
 
2. Name: Bryan Combrinck
 
Question: Your boss André Watson had stats to prove that in the first round of the Varsity Cup there was more movement, less kicking and more tries.  I am not sure that that is possible. In the very first match there were 47 penalties apart from free kicks, scrums and line-outs. In the third match there were 26 penalties, a penalty try and 12 free kicks. Five times the referee stopped a player's efforts to take a tap kick.
 
Are we really to believe that this is creating a better game?

Marius Jonker: Hi Bryan.

Good observation.

This great game of rugby, that we all love, has so many fascinating features to it. One of these is the ability for teams to score great tries. Players, administrators, spectators and referees want to see fantastic tries being scored and the more the better!

Super rugby has been the advertisement to the world for exciting running rugby in the past. In the last season or two however we have seen less running, more kicking and fewer tries. We believe that slack refereeing and the lack of player compliance (especially the tackle and off-side in general play) has contributed to this and it needed urgent attention.

Yes, there has been a lot of penalties in recent games. Yes, this does irritate some people out there but we also believe that this application will create space and that players and referees will adapt to the law which will free the ball up quicker and result in more playing time and ultimately more tries.

Referees have been told not to back down on this and I am optimistic that, come week three of Super 14, we will be glued to the TV watching fantastic, exciting and pulsating rugby.

Watch this space!!

Enjoy the season.

Marius.
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3. Name: Alistair Archibald
 
Question: Hi, I'm hoping you can clarify something for me. Law 15. 5 (c) says a tackled player may release the ball by putting it on the ground in any direction. 15. 5 (d) says a tackled player may release the ball by pushing it along the ground in any direction except forward. Note the difference in those two points between 'putting it on the ground' and 'pushing it along the ground'. Law 15. 5 (g) says If a player is tackled near the goal line, that player may immediately reach out and ground the ball on or over the goal line to score a try. Does that mean then that he cannot 'push' the push along the ground to score? We had a try disallowed on Saturday after a tackle near the line. There was no 'double movement' but the ref said he hadn't released the ball. I can only think he deemed it to have been 'pushed' as I can see no other reason for the disallowance.
 
Thanks.

Marius Jonker: Hi Alistair.

You have quoted law 15 and so you are obviously up to speed.

Placing the ball in any direction is allowed. Pushing the ball back to your own goal-line or to the side is also good. The moment you push the ball in the direction of the opponents' goal-line it will be judged as a knock-on. Pushing the ball over the goal-line to score a try can thus not be allowed because (1) it will be a knock-on and (2) you need downward pressure to score.

Regards, Marius.
 
4. Name: Johann Delport
 
Question: Hi. My question relates to Law 1. 6. When is the ground considered dangerous and unsafe for playing on? In the UK we regularly have to call off matches because the pitches are frozen solid and not taking a stud. What I want to know is what happens in summer when the pitch is bone dry and rock hard and wont take a stud? Last season I've moved a game because I felt the pitch was too hard and dangerous for this reason. I then had complaints from the coaches. I brought this point up with some other referees since and was told that the game should go ahead on a pitch like that because it is flat and hard and not cut up and hard. This unfortunately does not make sense to me as I feel the same safety issues arise whether the pitch is frozen solid or baked solid. In both those cases the ground is like concrete which you can't play on.
Can you help me with my confusion. 
 
Marius Jonker: Hi Johann.

Law 1. 1 (b) clearly gives you an indication of what surface a game can be played on. In SA we often come across pitches that are as hard as concrete because of weather conditions and these have always been acceptable to play on.

From your explanation I would think that you did not have to call the game off providing there were no other safety concerns that you noticed.

At the end of the day the safety of players is your responsibility and if you have a legitimate reason to raise the alarm then you should.

Kind Regards, Marius.

5. Name: David Jameson
 
Question: Hello again from the States and thank you!
 
Tough luck or come back?
 
Blue has just received a warning for repeatedly disrupting Red's possession close to the Blue line. Red now have an attacking ruck on Blue's 5m line. As the ball emerges, the referee calls advantage for the Blue No. 13 encroaching offside. The ball is passed quickly to the outside centre channel, where Red No. 8 is positioned for the crash ball. He breaks the tackle of the offside and blitzing Blue No. 13, and has a clear run to the line.
 
Unfortunately, he has lost his sense of place on the field and mistakes the Dead Ball line for the goal line. Consequently, he runs unchallenged clear through the 15m in-goal area, and dots down the ball beyond the dead ball line. The referee has not called Advantage Over.
 
Should the referee award a 22m drop-out or come back to the penalty for offside?

Marius Jonker: Hi David.

Tough luck. . . . . . . advantage over.

Red 8 should get to an ATM as soon as he can, draw lots of cash and be prepared buy lots of rounds for getting this wrong! 

Cheers, Marius.
 
6. Name: Grant Malcolm
 
Question: Your "Right or Wrong" clips are very informative, and if I may I'd like to ask some questions based on Clip 7, 2nd February.  Sharks 7 is tackled and a ruck forms, but ends successfully almost immediately as the Sharks drive over the ball.  Stormers 2 bumps the Sharks 9 and is rightly penalised.  My hypothetical questions: (a) Would Stormers 2 have been entitled to pick up the ball - it looks like he was onside, so it doesn't matter that he approaches from the side? (b) Would Stormers 2 have been entitled to form a second ruck by making contact with Sharks 9 and attempting to win the ball with his feet? Finally (c) as the whistle blows, Sharks 2 crouches over the tackled player and ball - if there had been no tackle or ruck, but Sharks 7 had either slipped or dived on the ball, so any player could approach from any angle, and Sharks 2 adopts this position - can he legitimately form a ruck by making contact with a Stormers player who tries to pick up the ball? Thank you.  

Marius Jonker: Hi Grant.

a) If the ball was out and No.2 came from an on-side position he could play the ball.

b) Had Sharks 9 and Stormers 2 both gone for the ball a new ruck can develop.

c) Yes.

Cheers, Marius.
 
7. Name: Dixie England
 
Question: Law 5. 7 (e) requires that an option offered to a team after time expires results in the end of the game.  Also that the game can't finish on a Mark, penalty kick or free kick.  If time expires and the No. 15 kicks, whereupon an offside forward (No. 2) moves towards where the ball lands, the referee is to whistle before the offside player can hit the catcher.  In such circumstances, the referee then offers the non-offending side an option of a penalty where the No. 2 started moving ahead, or a scrum where the No. 15 kicked. 
 
Does the offer of this option end the game?

Marius Jonker: Hi Dixie.

No.

The team will be allowed to either take the penalty or the scrum and the next time the ball becomes dead the final whistle will be blown. If the team takes the scrum option and this is followed by a similar scenario it is still not the end of the game and the team will be allowed to carry out their option.

Cheers, Marius.

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