In the final analysis, touch judge Stuart Dickinson’s deadly judgment call was shot to pieces by his own uncertainty. Dickinson, the Australian who was responsible for the dismissal 10 minutes into match, admitted as much, according to England head coach Sir Clive Woodward.
Woodward said he had spoken to Dickinson soon after England’s defeat. By that time Woodward had watched six replays of the incident in which Shaw nudged the All Black lock Keith Robinson between the shoulder blades with his knee for being on the wrong side of a ruck.
Woodward’s version of the conversation? “I spoke to Dickinson. He said, ‘You have the benefit of a replay, I hadn’t’. And I said that you cannot send someone off unless you are 100%. When he sees it, he will be disappointed.”
England’s problems in the second row became a full-blown crisis when Danny Grewcock was cited later by the independent commissioner for an alleged stamp on All Black centre Daniel Carter. His case was due to be heard in the early hours of this morning, along with Shaw’s. Woodward confirmed that England would have to bring in a raft of replacements from the Churchill Cup squad in Canada because of the high injury toll from the game, with Matt Stevens ruled out, and Trevor Woodman, Stuart Abbott, Mike Tindall and Richard Hill all unlikely to be fit to face Australia in Brisbane on Saturday.
“It’s not a crisis, it’s a challenge,” said Woodward, but he was incensed by the decision to send off Shaw.
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Woodward’s outlook was uncompromising even before he and the England tour lawyer, Richard Smith QC, went in to bat for Shaw at the disciplinary tribunal headed by Australian Michael Goodwin and New Zealanders Bruce Squire and Ash Edwards.
Woodward’s message to international match officials is simple: if you make a decision that turns a Test into a lottery, be sure you are right. He was annoyed that Dickinson made his call from the far touch line, from where Shaw “struck” just as referee Nigel Williams had awarded a penalty against New Zealand for killing the ball. “It was a huge call and he was a long way away,” Woodward said. “It was a ridiculous call; the guy killed the ball, (Julian) White stood on him, and Shaw couldn’t get his leg high enough, so he put his knee on him to let him know he was there.”
However, Woodward was careful not to blame Williams. “The ref had a good game, but when a touch judge comes running in and says, ‘Red card, knee in the head’, he has no choice.” Woodward did not waste any time in getting his retaliation in, even enlisting the support of Robinson, an artful niggler, and former All Black flanker Josh Kronfeld, both of whom played down the issue. “It’s ferocious out there, it’s not tiddlywinks. Robinson said he never felt anything,” Woodward said. “I’m trying not to overreact, but it ruined the game for all the spectators. I thought he (Dickinson) overreacted to voices in the crowd, and I don’t think those big-screen replays in the stadium help. It stuffed us up completely, simple as that.”
There’s a growing sense in some quarters that where disciplinary matters are concerned, there is one law for the Australian-New Zealand (Anzac) alliance and another for touring sides. In 1998, Grewcock became the second England player to be sent off in an international when he tapped New Zealand hooker Anton Oliver on the head with the toe of his boot. It was stupid, but not a full-blooded kick. However, Australian referee Wayne Erickson could barely contain his relish in expelling Grewcock. In the same match, All Black lock Ian Jones stamped on England prop Graham Rowntree’s head without censure.
Last summer in Wellington, in a game refereed by Dickinson, England full-back Josh Lewsey’s head was stamped on by All Black lock Ali Williams in a ruck. Williams was cited, but an Anzac tribunal cleared him. Woodward has not forgotten the incident: “You get Williams stamping on Lewsey, and he is cleared, and then you get a guy leaning on a player who gets sent off. It leaves a sour taste.”
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Shaw, who has never been known for dirty play, treated said: “It’s absolute bulls***.” The tribunal appears to have agreed.