Martin Johnson hopes the winner of the Rugby World Cup will not be decided by refereeing decisions after a controversial opening week.
Referees in Japan have already come under fire, with World Rugby releasing a statement on Tuesday saying the standard of officiating has not been high enough.
It came in the wake of a high tackle by Australia’s Reece Hodge during the Wallabies’ win over Fiji last Saturday.
Hodge was yesterday retrospectively banned for the tackle but that will be of little consolation to Fiji, who are on the brink of exiting the World Cup.
And Johnson, who won the tournament with England in 2003, is just hoping that it will be the players - and not the officials - determining who lifts the trophy. “I hope this tournament is not decided by decisions like that. I hope it is decided by the players playing on the field,” said Johnson, speaking on behalf of Land Rover, Official Worldwide Partner of Rugby World Cup 2019.
“I think with the high tackle thing, it gets a little bit over-refereed early on. A good referee knows the difference between someone accidentally whipping a hand up instinctively and catching someone high - and someone taking a shot at someone’s head. I hope common sense prevails.
I played in the semi-final in 2003 when a guy (France wing Christophe Dominici) tripped Jason [Robinson], which technically is a straight red card. But I genuinely thought that if the referee sends him off I’ll ask him not to. You don’t want the game to be remembered for that. It should be remembered for the rugby.”
Land Rover is official Worldwide Partner of Rugby World Cup 2019. With over 20 years of heritage supporting rugby at all levels, Land Rover is celebrating what makes rugby, rugby. #LandRoverRugby
