Wonder where he learnt his skills...

@@Lezzyboy87 practice like anyone, and league helped as well, but coming from league was why his defense was awful so swings and roundabouts 🤣

A player of his quality would've been a seasoned All Black

Ah man, what try! I rewatch that on KZfaq regularly

I get you completely, but I think the usual argument is that if a penalty try is awarded, the player responsible has to be carded too.

You might not be a ref, but I'm confident you'd do a better job!

Letter of law he’s jumped on a man on the floor - which is illegal, because anyone on the floor is ‘out of the game’ - but if that man is in the process of scoring, surely he’s not ‘out of the game’ and fair game for a tackle? Can’t blame the ref but the laws need more common sense for situations like that. Ridiculous decision ruined the game - just look at the final score! Ex are champions cup last 4 but binning 60 in the league? Come on

Nor is Karl Dickson 😅

Karl dickson is terrible

That last Exeter try was clearly held up too 😂😂. Not that it matters at all cause the red card opened the flood gates

pollard didnt play too well yesterday tbh, made some really good plays with excellent vision but also gave away quite a lot, also didnt have the best day from the boot

I agree that Pollard was getting criticised unfairly. There's a lot of hype about the "batsh!t" No. 10 moments of brilliance that Barrett/Smith/Ntamack/Russell perform, but if a 10 doesn't get noticed when they win then I think that's a great mark of their performance as well. From an opposition point of view, Pollard is agonisingly consistent. The passes, the bombs, the defensive work is soul-crushingly consistent which allows everyone else around him to shine, especially for the Boks. For Leicester he has 2 equally consistent scrum half's to depend on, an incredible back 3 for flair and finishing, and a dominant pack who do the hard work. It allows Pollard to force errors in the opposition through attrition. Unfortunately, as was the case against Leinster, if the pack are dominated then every other piece in the plan is exposed and it doesn't matter who is pulling the strings then.

@@davequiquegg That was a brilliant summary.

I read today that the guidance given to refs on this was updated this week, in which case he was just doing his job. Seems likely that it's a measure to try and reduce dangerous impacts on players lying prone, I can kind of understand why they're doing it but feel bad for Woodburn as it's never nice getting sent off.

Applying the laws ofthe game is not playing silly buggers. Seems to me the silly buggers is what results from all the gray areas which have colonised the game now from not applying the law objectively. What you say about the sliding player still being active is correct though, but thats part of the rules as well. A player is allowed to cross the try line under his/her own momentum.

YOu need to listen to what the referee said (and perhaps look quickly at the relevant laws of the game). Diving on a player who is already successfully tackled is foul play - in this case 'foul play' which prevented a try since he also dislodged the ball. Technically it was the right decision as far as I can see.

@@dalenewton9697 A player is not deemed to be tackled whilst he is still moving towards the try line. He has to be "held" and that means stationary. As long as he is moving towards the try line, he can still be tackled. And Woodburn did NOT dive on him. He dived short of him and slid into him.

@@MrHistorian123 As far as I am aware there is nothing in the laws of the game or the officiating directives which back up what you have said there. A player doesnt have to be held, excpet in the sense of contact with the player while they are 'down', which is when there is knee contact with the ground. Thus, in this case the player was already tackled. What you say about a player sliding forward still being able to be 'tackled' would apply IF he wasnt already tackled. If you could find somethign that supports your claim that 'a player moving towards the try line is not deemed to be tackled' this would also change things, but again, I don't think any such disposition exists

@@dalenewton9697 OK - as Nigel Owens has pointed out, how does anyone stop a player who has been tackled and fallen to the ground or dived of their own accord and who can then slide towards the try line and score under his/her own momentum? Either: the tackle is complete as soon as his knee hits the ground and he must release the ball, present it or offload it Or: he is still capable of making ground and scoring, so other players must have the right to intervene to try to stop this. Otherwise every player can dive 5m short of the line knowing that nothing can stop them getting to the line because no-one can touch them.

@@MrHistorian123 Owens is full of shit generally and I think basically says whatever he gets paid to say, and to seed confusion/controversy. They cant do that because diving for the line DOESN'T mean someone cant tackle you! If the player dives for the line then the nearest player can do what they should logically do (block their path/tackle them). The present incident is a case of a player already having tackled the carrier.

He’s diving on to a player that is already on the floor

@@CP-uk3sx he didnt dive on him

@@dougclark9921 clearly makes contact with him. Is he a tackler? No he’s already been tackled and held on ground.

Onto vs into. By your logic, any winger sliding into score in the corner is untouchable because they’re off their feet. If a player is still actively playing the ball (ie sliding in to score) and the ‘tackling’ player isn’t doing anything dangerous, it should be play on imo. Seems this is one of hundreds of grey area in the laws, but I don’t see how this specific application does anything to protect players, and it actually removes a contest. I feel that the laws of rugby should only really do two things: protect a player, and then ensure a contest. This reading does neither.

b-cuz Leinster are quite simply a class above

Because Leinster is basically a different ball game… english rugby is not the same as our European counterparts :(

@@alicecbradley sad, but true (for now)

The pack dominance. Tigers like to dominate in the scrum and breakdown and wear out the oppositions pack while being consistently good with kicking etc in the backs. The backs for both teams are even on paper but the packs are definitely not even! Too many good playmakers in the Leinster pack vs Leicester and jackals in the backs mean Tigers over-commit, get tired, out of place, sloppy, and then it's easy to pull them apart.

This translates to “go the rock” Do you like Dwayne’s movies

Ben Cohen was doing it when Chris was in nappies

I guess the problem is that if the tackle is completed then he's going in off his feet (and in at the side too if a competition could be formed), but it's definitely a grey area. After all, is he meant to just wait to let Ashton try to place the ball over the line?! There are a few rugby rules like that that I don't like, where it seems like the intention of the rule is to prevent you stopping scoring. There's a yellow for taking a man in the air in a Leicester-Northampton game a few years ago when it isn't a kick, just a bad pass that George North has to leap high in the air to take. North is running onto the ball at pace, and there's no cover behind so the player tackling him (my memory wants to say Matt Scott?) is faced with either tackling a man in the air, or just stepping aside and letting North score because if he gathers that ball at the pace he's going, he's going to score sooner than the defender can react. It's hard to feel justified to punish the player when their only other option is to just go limp and let the other team score, just like with Woodburn here. And what if Hogg's tackle fails? Woodburn is trying to get underneath to hold the ball up just as much as he's trying to drive the man out.

@@arrell1xyz Get ready for players looking they are on the slip and slide at a summer party

@@ofs82 Yep - there are plenty of people on here saying the ref decided based on the rules. They are right but sometimes something happens where everybody thinks its not right. If its a 1 in mil event then its fine but what this has done is shown other players that if they dont get caught within 10m on a wet day that its a nailed-down try.

Leicester of last week-worthy..

who, Exeter? Saracens are the real crooks ask anyone..

Racing fan I think

@Joe no it's not Joe. Pipe down. you're on every comment

Not the worst decision but probably the best example of why the current laws are just stupid in some cases

Letter of the law it is correct. However I can't remember it ever being enforced before. If it is consistent then fair enough but it's not.

@Joe He dove on Hoggy more than Ashton. And he was also going for the ball! What do we now do at rucks? Half the time the counter ruck is engaging with people who are off their feet and not supporting their own body weight? I know laws are laws, but there needs to be some sort of consistent enforcing! You know it's a wild decision when even Healey is defending Exeter!

@Joe how often do you see it though it’s like you’re now not allowed to make a try saving tackle it’s so often the second man goes in to try and hold the ball up and it’s never penalised until this game

@Joe so you’re just meant to let them score try’s now?

@Joe he didn’t dive on him. It’s a ballocks rule.

Stop whinging and respect the reff

@@raypurchase1239He clearly did dive on him it’s right there in 4K for you mate

@@alicecbradley bitter Chiefs "fan"

@@adamcarreras-neal4697 huh? Im a tigers fan pal dont insult me like that🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

have some respect, there will be no one like him when he's gone

@@karlosdeevs, no respect for arrogant jerks who rub their opponents’ faces in it. Notice he never brings attention to himself when he misses a tackle that leads to a try, which is happening more often. Good riddance.

@@garywagner2466 still better than rubbing his opponents off with questionable shoulder like certain other countrymen. For me the past is past, and i‘ll give credit where it‘s unquestionably due.

@@karlosdeevs, if you mean Owen “I never learned how to tackle from my dad” Farrell, I agree. Deliberately trying to injure your opponent, year after year, should have resulted in lengthy suspensions. Instead, he was picked for England above much better players. No nepotism there. Another jerk I hope disappears into the sunset under new management.

​@@garywagner2466 better you couldn't score 100 trys you sad thing

Clearly never watched many games with Sam Simmonds in he’s a game changing no.8

@@MattF_03 think he meant it in a nice way

@Boba Fett That's my point. He has to be the best no.8 right now even for the Saxons.

I am not a fan of his rugby but he's okay. I think you mean Joe Simmonds?

@Sibusiso Nogabe No, Joe is Sam's brother. He plays 10 & 15 .

should be a tasty affair

​@Joe give the penalty try then, but why the yellow and then red. It ruins the contest. Triple penalty for what wasn't even dangerous and I don't think he even touched the opposition

@Joe I accept that he followed the laws, I think these new laws that encourage cards are terrible. A penalty try (guaranteed 7) is enough, UNLESS there is foul play.

@@mvubu6823 by definition, a penalty try is due to foul play. Not you're best bit of logic there. If they'd shown the first yellow, then we'd see if that one was harsh as the number of times we see a deliberate knock on not carded. He did come from a long way and slides in. A player is tackled when their knee hits the turf, if his momentum sends him over or close enough to reach out to score that is allowed as long as there's no double movement. There clearly isnt and the second player has clearly hit a man on the deck. It's a yellow, no amount of Chief's whinging will change that.

@Joe pipe down Leicester boy. You clearly don't know rugby