Banned Steve Diamond gets stuck into 'flawed' TMO system

Newcastle boss Steve Diamond believes the Television Match Official (TMO) system for the Gallagher Premiership is “flawed” and needs to be made fully professional following his team’s controversial 17-15 loss at Exeter Chiefs last month that saw him banned for six matches for verbal abuse of the match officials.

Diamond is adamant his ban “was the perfect foil to let them off the hook” because it took attention away from the TMO decision, which saw bottom of the table Newcastle denied a vital away win as the final passage of play led to the Greg Fisilau try that gave the Chiefs victory. Falcons were incensed by the actions of Tamati Tua in the immediate build-up to the score, who made contact with Alex Hearle in a ruck, however, it was not reviewed by the TMO.

The Newcastle boss was banned for his ‘industrial’ language after the final whistle to the match officials and later told TMO David Rose he should retire. Diamond, who will watch Newcastle’s home game with Northampton on Friday night sitting in the stand with his eight-year-old daughter, said: “Let’s be perfectly honest here, I have got a six week ban for saying an inappropriate comment, which I have apologised for saying to a professional referee in complete privacy – not to broadcasters – and my ban starts this week while the team of five officials (involved in the Exeter game) were all involved in Europe last week.

“There were three or four incidents in Exeter scoring that try and three were subjective; was it in from the side, was it a knock on and was it a forward pass? You have to go with what the officials think, but there was an incident of foul play which leaves a player on his back, holding their face with the gum shield coming out of their mouth which sets off the alarm, and the ball is passed over that player to continue the play and then they score. They go through that passage and only look for a forward pass – that is my point.

“A huge mistake, someone was hit in the face, an illegal action which the ref didn’t pick up because he can’t see everything and surely for goodness sake the TMO should be seeing these things. The system is flawed, and we are struggling to keep Newcastle alive, so maybe they need more investment and more experienced people doing these jobs.

“The TMO is last set of eyes on it, and we have to make sure these people are adept at what they are doing and its about recruitment, investment and I think the professional game should govern professional referees and that is how it should go over the next 10 years. It would make a lot of difference by making everyone professional when (at present) most of the TMOs are amateurs who have a good knowledge of rugby and a keen eye. We spend a lot of time looking at forward passes, not foul play.

“Yes, it was a decision that could have cost millions, and there has to be accountability and regulation, and I can’t say what I said. But there also has to be accountability; otherwise, people keep on making mistakes.

“My accountability is a six-week ban, which will affect the team; the accountability for someone gouging (against Leicester) is six weeks. Do we just accept the team backing up a referee haven’t done their job, and do we just accept that is how it goes, or should that guy not referee for a week or two? We don’t know because we do not get feedback.

“There is a massive onus on referees to hold their hand up and say they got it wrong. I have received a letter (from the RFU referees’ department) saying they thought it may have been foul play. There is no relegation this year, so does it matter? Yes, it does because you go to Exeter where you rarely win, and the TV people, the crowd on that side all saw it, and we are not making it up. We just want the system to get as good as it can be. I used industrial language, and the sanction is correct. I was having a go at the system, not an individual.”

Would bringing in a captain or coach’s review in a match make a difference, as has been introduced in American Football? “I don’t think a captain’s review is needed. The system as it is clearly doesn’t work and its not the job of a captain to go to the referee and say check that because we have got professional referees, assistant referees who are very experienced and get paid, and we have TMOs whose sole job is to review incidents of foul play and where things don’t look correct.

“At the top of the game – not the amateur game – then incidents of foul play should not be missed when you have a coupe of minutes to retrace and have a look at it.

“When people sit in front of the panel, they have to apologise which I did do but there is a problem with the disciplinary system – not the panels which are very good or the referees – and there are only people like me who are prepared to say things.”

Diamond admits his side could get a “hiding” if they do not deliver a relentless defensive performance against reigning champions Northampton on Friday night. He added: “The Exeter result was massive not going our way, and I don’t think people understand the pressures in something like that, and it will be difficult to finish off the bottom. That would be a first for me. I am not allowed around the team and changing rooms on match day, and I will sit in the stand and watch the game with my daughter.”

As for the Falcons’ search for new investors, he added: “I spoke to the owners on Friday, and there is due diligence going on in the background, so we are in this holding pattern at the moment, and at some point, we are going to have to land. We have an opportunity on Friday to put ourselves in the shop window. We will be a handful.”