Great, Spoilt, Expectations

This morning, like many in my halls of residence, I rose early to take in what promised to be one of the greatest rugby matches of all time.

But maybe we shouldn't have been so naive, for rugby matches very rarely live up to the hype when it is heaped upon them, normally falling somewhere in between great and dismal. That's the nature of the beast, and that's what makes the special ones so very special. Sadly we didn't get to see an exuberant Wales back 10 flowing freely, but we did get controversy and talking points a plenty.

Alain Rolland, with a fine disregard for common sense, sent off the Wales captain, Sam Warburton, or 'Sam' as those who have never met him are now calling him. But when you cut through the sentimentality, and the unhappy faces of those 61,000 in the Millennium Stadium, you have to understand why Rolland pulled out red: he was following orders, directives given out by the IRB.

I quote from an IRB referees memo:
"...tackles involving a player being lifted off the ground and tipped horizontally and were then either forced or dropped to the ground are illegal and thus constitute illegal play."

"The lifted player is dropped from a height with no regard to the player's safety. A red card should be issued for this type of tackle"

Of course it wasn't malicious, and Sam is a lovely guy, he is really, I promise! But the integrity of the referee should not be called into question. Sentimentality should not come into the debate either - semi final or otherwise. There are not different rules for big games. Just because the rugby world collectively rose to watch this match does not mean that Alain Rolland should act any differently. You can question the IRB's dogmatic memorandums, but not the application of them by their referees, especially with regard to the nature of the occasion that you may have felt was ruined by the Irishman.

Tough love, indeed, but it's the only way to be. The World Cup semi final does not owe us, the rugby public, an outstanding contest of free-flowing rugby, so let's appreciate it for what it was, and leave the tears and the righteous indignation out of it. How DARE he 'spoil' our big day...