Cuchullain said:
Glenn Black is a very ordinary ref.
He should go well in the NRL then.
Cuchullain said:
Fair enough he keeps the game under control but he misses a hell of a lot and seems to keep the games at a stop/start pace.
Plenty of those types around.
Cuchullain said:
I agree that we need a neutral ref and if this guy doesn't (or anyone else) get a chance to ref top level matches how is the situation going to improve?
Even though the standard of refereeing is pretty low in the NRL, I'm a great believer in giving a guy (or girl for that matter) a chance. The ultimate mistake Rugby League keeps making with New Zealand referees is, they give him one or two games if he's lucky (unlike an NRL referee) and then dump him on the back of some vicious attacks in the press. Happened to Phil Houston and Dave Pakieto. Two refs who are no worse than your average NRL referee.
At the end of the day, refs from outside GB and Aus need to referee at a higher level than what they currently do. It's the only way they will ever get a fair deal over their GB and Australian counterparts.
That's where the problem starts. GB have given Black ago this year in Super League, but the Aussies continue to shy away from it, preferring instead to focus on their own.
The New Zealand local game will continue to get weaker as more and more players head off shore. Ultimately the standard of refereeing will too. Maybe our refs may have no choice either, other than to pack up and leave as well.
That would be a sad day IMO.
