TMOs are already misinterprited and misrepresented
The initiative to adopt the Television Match Official (TMO) in Sri Lanka may look as welcome move by many Rugby enthusiasts in the country but some ardent followers of certain teams have already began to misinterpret its usage. The President of the Sri Lanka Rugby Referees’ Society (SLRRS), Nizam Jamaldeen, terms this aspect of the story as Rugby fans being over-passionate on their supporting team and ruling issued by the referee who controls the game, rather than being fully aware of the game’s constantly changing rules and laws. “Without knowing the laws how can spectators fully enjoy a game”, Jamaldeen questioned while pointing out the importance of being updated on the development of Rugby.
“Without knowing the exact laws and on why the referee made such a decision, how would the spectators know what happened in the game?
Some are really passionate of Rugby but that’s not enough. Anything that comes their team’s way, it’s fine for them and whatever happens the opposite they react harshly. That’s fine, as people have choices and likings. At the same time you cannot be too emotional, you must control that. Otherwise it’s more advisable to stay at home than visiting the ground to watch a game. End of the day sportsmanship should prevail,” he elaborated. Jamaldeen was seriously concerned about an incident that took place few weeks ago at a top division school game where the referee of the match was manhandled by supporters, surprisingly from the winning side. A week after that incident took place, certain supporters have begun question the true owner of the TMO, hours after it was introduced for the first time at the First Leg of the 72nd Bradby Shield encounter between traditional rivals Royal and Trinity colleges.
“The TMO is totally the referee’s call. This facility is used to clear doubts whenever there’s a doubt on a try. It’s used all over the world in good faith and here in Sri Lanka it’s still at s trail phase. All over the world this technology is being used but still there are one or two mistakes taking place even after making use of this facility. Eventually it proves that referees are human too,” Jamaldeen, a top player during his playing career from schools to clubs and eventually Sri Lanka explained. But why does the Rugby referee always end up at the receiving end, even after handling a fast-moving and well flowing competitive match is a Million Dollar question the Sri Lankan fraternity is still unaware of. According to Jamaldeen, who himself has earned a name as a top class Rugby referee, it’s passion most of the time that keeps the spectators stagnated and blindfolded from looking at the game as a true Rugby follower.
This way of thinking has come to an extent that many, even former top players, think more than twice when it comes to taking up Rugby refereeing, leave aside the total fresh legs and those who played at low divisions at school and club levels. “We are planning to pull in more individuals, especially the young blood, into refereeing. I know it’s a thankless job and that’s one of the reasons why many youngsters who quit playing take the option of coaching, which is also more lucrative. As a governing body we are doing what is best for the referees and the game in general. We have conducted workshops, seminars at regional level and it will continue. With the support of the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union, all plans are running smoothly as planned and positively. Our target group is youngsters between the age category of 20 and 25. As at now we have about 100 referees at different levels and there are 12 at Division I level.”
Whatever their plans may be, if the spectators’ do not change their attitude towards a good game and stick to the policy of being ardent followers of a team, the exercise always end in futile. Continuation of this mindset means that youngsters, especially the school leavers, will more on to become coaches in numbers and a huge dearth of skilled referees may become a rare sight in time to come. “Refereeing may be less lucrative than coaching but it doesn’t mean that anyone who wants to be a referee must be a top division player. What he needs is to know the game. If anyone can be a good coach after playing in lower divisions, why can’t he be a good referee. The game and rules change from time to time. And with the present nature it’s not only the coaches, players and referees that must be updated. The spectator or the fans too must be well aware of these changes, unless otherwise, the referee will be always at the receiving end,” Jamadeen predicted.
Despite constant odds Jamaldeen was optimistic that the TMO made its way to Sri Lanka to stay. As the head of the SLRRS, he stated that his faction is ever willing to adopt the TMO facility at any game. But what makes it a luxury at this point is the cost that is involved to conduct. If it could make its initiative at an important game as the Bradby Shield, Jamaldeen thinks TMO can be a regular feature if stakeholders of Rugby could come to an even platform. “Earlier we could not initiate the TMO because we didn’t have the necessary communication kits. Of the record we have, the First Leg of the 72nd Bradby Shield becomes that groundbreaking game when this facility was first used in Sri Lanka. We are studying about the cost involved and we need to explore more on this. For the Bradby Shield encounter, both schools made requests and both legs being live games, made their need workable. They also had a sponsor for the encounter. As the Referees’ Society we will be always willing to help any team, be it schools or clubs, at such requests. It’s our duty to help the game going,” Jamaldeen asserted.