I'd have to watch it closely again but didn't Hardaker end up getting the ball to touch the try-line while still in possession. Not with the first movement which was clearly back into the field of play as intended but as he was forced back in to his own in-goal area by the defenders.

If (and it's only an if) the ball did touch the whitewash with Hardaker still attached what should the ruling have been ?

I trust the impartial video - [size=50I'm not a Saint's fan really[/size - referee got the ruling absolutely correct with all the HD quality, slow-mo and the like at his disposal but if he erred that could make for an interesting conversation with the new referee's controller.

Rugby League is a simple game make far more complicated by people who think that its some sort of science project.

Is that because of their quest to have as many aliases as possible?

But he lost possession! It would have been ok had he been putting the ball down on the line at the other end of the field!!

No, those are the geeks who sit down at the front of the science classroom with their hands up at every question because only they know the answers, the aliases in their heads tell them that they know more than the science teacher because they read a book about it once, but in reality the contribution they make is minimal and often worthless, often the aliases in their heads become real people - thats when the illness has kicked in and they can often talk to two or three other people inside their own heads.

Bad night at the office..... I would be more worried if i was a Stains fan....

Was that the ruling? If so was it correct?

At what point was Hardaker deemed to have lost possession? IMO it was only after the ball had touched the try-line with Hardaker still in contact and at no point prior to that had he lost contact.



Does it make a difference whether your attacking or defending? On attack the line is part of the in-goal is that not also the case when defending?

Had Thaler ruled on it in live play (had he did the Makinson try that followed with what at first sight looked a dodgy - although ultimately fair IMO - put down) I'd have given the score not least because the risk of what Hardaker was attempting deserved punishing ...... but I prefer the video referees to calmly and methodically come up with the correct call where the lines are concerned.

Perhaps Ganson did.

The point i was making last night at the game was that had Hardaker been attacking and had grounded the ball on the line its a try the opposition cant knock the ball loose (knees in??) then pick it up and roll over with it can they??
For me the ball was grounded whilst the defender was in contact with ZH which imo deems the play dead.

Hardaker knocked on, simples

Poor

Glad we weren't playing Wigan last night.Would like to hear mcds thoughts on squad rotation and same predictable tactics instead of one word answers when interviewed .seems sky are scared of upsetting him .

If we were being very micro-analytical, I thought Makinson nudged the ball forward (with his knees, but definitely while playing at it) into the other Saints player, who was in front of him. The other Saints player didn't deliberatley play at it. So was he offside?

I ask this in a "You're the ref" quiz game spirit, because I thought the outcome was about what everyone deserved.

As for the knock on, I thought Hardaker first grounded the ball over the line, so I think the tackle was complete. He then lost it. If you lose the ball in the act of playing it (so while the ball is dead) can the other team pick it up and score? I've never seen play on in that situation, but I'm not sure what the actual rules are...

Again, lest I be accused of clutching at straws, I'm not a fan of too much micro-analysis in these things. In anything approaching normal speed Hardaker reached, lost the ball in the tackle and Makinson picked it up nad scored. I'm not convinced there would have been any justice in a disallowed try. Which sort of highlights why I'm not a fan of too much use of the video ref.

Another question - has anyone ever done a proper controlled trial of the technology, i.e. got the ref to make the call on the field and independently had a video review of each decision? How often is the outcome different? I harbour suspicions that it might be one of those things that's less incredibly useful than people think.

At the end of the day we started really well and for the first 20 mins or so it looked like we would win by a massive scoreline so to lose is a massive disappointment.

I too was stood near some proper "coaches" who seemed to know every single rule without actually knowing any. As much as I love the Southstand there are some numpties who seem to be the loudest fans there. For instance one of the clowns blamed everything on Clarkson, even right to the end when there was only him chasing and tackling. When I asked if Zak should be dropped for his errors he looked at me stupidly as if he hadn't done anything wrong.

For me the team looked very jaded after 30 mins, I regularly pointed out players who were stood with hands on knees trying to catch their breath. Delaney (worryingly) seemed to be the worst culprit. I know he is playing with only one shoulder but shouldn't affect his general fitness.

As for the Mac bashing, I am at a loss to explain. Most Rhinos fans seem not to like him but his record is unbelievable. First league loss in nine games, should be second if it wasn't for games in hand... what do people want. Sick of it. I remember the dark days when we could not win a thing. Lets get behind the team instead of constantly bashing them. Yes there were even boos in the Southstand last night. Ridiculous.

Could be worse, we could be Salford.........