Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

'You shouldn't miss something as blatant as that': Why ex-All Black is unhappy with Papalii decision

Dalton Papalii of the Blues signals to take the points during the round 12 Super Rugby Pacific match between Crusaders and Blues at Orangetheory Stadium, on May 13, 2023, in Christchurch, New Zealand. (Photo by Peter Meecham/Getty Images)

Blues flanker Dalton Papalii was red carded in the 15-3 defeat to the Crusaders early in the second half but the sequence of events after the high shot has left ex-All Black John Kirwan scratching his head.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Crusaders backs combined brilliantly to put Leicester Fainga’anuku over in the corner for a try before match officials went back to review Papalii’s challenge on Richie Mo’unga three phases earlier.

The review showed Mo’unga was hit high but that his pass was dropped by prop Tamaiti Williams before being recovered by Crusaders flanker Tom Christie some 10 metres downfield.

Nic Berry’s ruling at the time was ‘back off the chest’ which was never looked at under the review for the high tackle.

As a result, Papalii was yellow carded, which was later upgraded to a red, and the Crusaders’ try unlawfully stood despite a knock-on in the passage, which gave them a 15-3 lead.

“That is a pretty ridiculous decision actually,” Kirwan explained of the miss on Sky Sport NZ.

“The yellow card was merited, but there was a knock-on, you had to come back for the knock-on that Tamaiti Williams did.

ADVERTISEMENT

“That’s a critical moment in the game. I think the referees have to go away and look at that. You shouldn’t miss something as blatant as that.

“Head high, yeah I get that, but that is a knock-on. You come back for the head high, it is a yellow card.

“But we play on here and that’s a try. So that’s a really difficult moment at this level.”

The 14-man Blues were still able to muster a try-scoring opportunity in the 70th minute when Beauden Barrett produced a piece of magic.

Three kicks in succession had the Blues in position to score when the bounce stumped Barrett just metres from the try line.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Blues would have just been seven points adrift had the correct ruling been made earlier.

“In saying that, I just think the Crusaders were relentless in the first half,” Kirwan said.

“The Blues will go away, and their defence was great, but late in the second half they needed one of those moments that Beauden nearly pulled off.”

The visitors fell to fifth on the Super Rugby ladder while the Crusaders moved into third momentarily until the Brumbies play on Sunday afternoon.

 

ADVERTISEMENT

Boks Office | Episode 37 | Six Nations Round 4 Review

Cape Town | Leg 2 | Day 2 | HSBC Challenger Series 2025 | Full Day Replay

Gloucester-Hartpury vs Bristol Bears | PWR 2024/25 | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 36 | Six Nations Round 3 Review

Why did Scotland's Finn Russell take the crucial kick from the wrong place? | Whistle Watch

England A vs Ireland A | Full Match Replay

Kubota Spears vs Shizuoka BlueRevs | JRLO 2024/2025 | Full Match Replay

Watch now: Lomu - The Lost Tapes

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

7 Comments
h
hayden 672 days ago

Irrespective of being a blues fan (they played like garbage and deserved to lose, knock on or not), Nic Berry had time and time again proved himself at blatant misses or terrible decision making in big games and yet he's on the world cup panel. The rot goes all the way to the top it seems

f
frandinand 673 days ago

Why do people like Ben Smith continually quote JK. He is probably the most biased commentator around.
It might help Ben if you did some analysis based on your own observations instead of parroting a man who arguably was the worst NZ super rugby coach ever.

J
Jason 673 days ago

Looking at how bad match fixing is in all major sports.
Why do we assume rugby is free of cancer?

Considering the refs word on the field is law and world rugby will always protect him.

You would think he's the perfect target for unscrupulous bookies.
A single point of ultimate control

E
Euan 673 days ago

Some refs have blinkers on. Rugby is seriously in need of the Captain's challenge, which works so well in the NRL. Rubgy's refusal to use it can only be out down to snobbery.

J
Jan 673 days ago

Maybe the blues were preorganised to lose! Referee bias? Or coaches colluding?

Load More Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
Jahmirwayle 2 hours ago
'Unbelievable' Henry Pollock predicted his first Test try would be on the wing

It started with a gut-wrenching realization. I’d been duped. Months earlier, I’d poured $133,000 into what I thought was a golden opportunity a cryptocurrency investment platform promising astronomical returns. The website was sleek, the testimonials glowed, and the numbers in my account dashboard climbed steadily. I’d watched my Bitcoin grow, or so I thought, until the day I tried to withdraw it. That’s when the excuses began: “Processing delays,” “Additional verification required,” and finally, a demand for a hefty “release fee.” Then, silence. The platform vanished overnight, taking my money with it. I was left staring at a blank screen, my savings gone, and a bitter taste of shame in my mouth.I didn’t know where to turn. The police shrugged cybercrime was a black hole they couldn’t navigate. Friends offered sympathy but no solutions. I spent sleepless nights scouring forums, reading about others who’d lost everything to similar scams. That’s when I stumbled across a thread mentioning a group specializing in crypto recovery. They didn’t promise miracles, but they had a reputation for results. Desperate, I reached out.The first contact was a breath of fresh air. I sent an email explaining my situation dates, transactions, screenshots, everything I could scrape together. Within hours, I got a reply. No fluff, no false hope, just a clear request for more details and a promise to assess my case. I hesitated, wary of another scam, but something about their professionalism nudged me forward. I handed over my evidence: the wallet addresses I’d sent my Bitcoin to, the emails from the fake platform, even the login credentials I’d used before the site disappeared.The process kicked off fast. They explained that scammers often move funds through a web of wallets to obscure their tracks, but Bitcoin’s blockchain leaves a trail if you know how to follow it. That’s where their expertise came in. They had tools and know-how I couldn’t dream of, tracing the flow of my coins across the network. I didn’t understand the technical jargon hash rates, mixing services, cold wallets but I didn’t need to. They kept me in the loop with updates: “We’ve identified the initial transfer,” “The funds split here,” “We’re narrowing down the endpoints.” Hours passed , and I oscillated between hope and dread. Then came the breakthrough. They’d pinpointed where my Bitcoin had landed a cluster of wallets tied to the scammers. Some of it had been cashed out, but a chunk remained intact, sitting in a digital vault the crooks thought was untouchable. I didn’t ask too many questions about that part; I just wanted results. They pressured the right points, leveraging the blockchain evidence to freeze the wallets holding my funds before the scammers could liquidate them. Next morning, I woke up to an email that made my heart skip. “We’ve secured access to a portion of your assets.” Not all of it some had slipped through the cracks but $133,000 worth of Bitcoin, my original investment, was recoverable. They walked me through the final steps: setting up a secure wallet, verifying the transfer, watching the coins land. When I saw the balance tick up on my screen, I sat there, stunned. It was real. My money was back.The ordeal wasn’t painless. I’d lost time, sleep, and a bit of faith in humanity. But the team at Alpha Spy Nest Recovery turned a nightmare into a second chance.  I’ll never forget what they did. In a world full of thieves, they were the ones who fought to make things right. Contacts below: email: Alphaspynest@mail.com, WhatsApp: +14159714490‬, Telegram: https://t.me/Alphaspynest

1 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Scotland player ratings vs France | 2025 Six Nations Scotland player ratings vs France | 2025 Six Nations
Search