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May 23, 2025 10 mins

Newstalk ZB’s Andrew Alderson and Sports Journalist Nick Bewly join Heather du Plessis-Allan for the Sports Huddle.

Supercars will officially race in a Kiwi double-header in New Zealand from 2026-2028. Can the country sustain two Supercars events?

Super Rugby referees have admitted they got it wrong in the Blues-Moana game. How far back should the video referee be able to go? Are they too hogtied to the rules?

The Sports Huddle discuss all this and more.

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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Friday Sports saddled with New Zealand Souberby's International Realty find.

Speaker 2 (00:05):
You're one of a kind.

Speaker 3 (00:12):
Clear foot in touch, dear it, So I'm going to
go back and disallow to try because it's a clear
foot in touch.

Speaker 1 (00:18):
That wasn't the final attacking phase within scoring, as Artie
Savi pointed out, the Blues got the ball back.

Speaker 4 (00:24):
It's going to be an interesting discussion point the news talk.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
Zy Sport God afternoon at admission from Super Rugby officials
and the refereeing panel made a mistake disallowing a Mowana
pacific a dry.

Speaker 2 (00:35):
That's okay, I think with angus and the refs always
talked to them like we're human, we make mistakes.

Speaker 5 (00:42):
On the sports title this evening, Andrew Ordison, news Dog
Z'DB sports reader and Nick Bewley commentating the Crusaders Highlanders
game live and free from seven o'clock on Gold. Hello
you two.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
Don't say that great to hear it?

Speaker 5 (00:56):
Or does you go into this? Are you going to
either of the matches over the weekend.

Speaker 2 (01:01):
No, I'm not, Ashley.

Speaker 4 (01:02):
I'll probably sit there and put my feet.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
Up and watching on Telly.

Speaker 5 (01:05):
There is a joy to that a nice warm fire. Yeah, nice,
both worlds. Is that because you want to be home
or is it simply because no one's invited you?

Speaker 3 (01:15):
Oh?

Speaker 2 (01:15):
Probably bit of both. No, I'm happy to be home,
believe you me.

Speaker 5 (01:19):
That'll be good.

Speaker 4 (01:20):
Just watch it with with the kids on the count totally.

Speaker 5 (01:23):
Now listen next, I'll tell you what's really got me
quite unnecessarily wound up this week as the super rugby rules.
How on earth are we supposed to follow the game?
If the refs can't follow the game.

Speaker 3 (01:36):
That's a good point, isn't it? And I'm glad I
don't have a hard copy of the rugby law book.
Would be pretty heavy away around towards as I head
to Apollo Project Stadium tonight for the Crusaders Highlanders. But
look at it is frustrating I must have made We're
talking about that incident last week with the foot and touch,
and I felt really sorry for Angus Gardner, the referee.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
He's stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Speaker 3 (01:57):
You've seen a really obvious, a clear and obvious foot
and touch irrespective of World Rugby's you know, over complicated
complex laws. Ultimately the play shouldn't it should have been
picked up fundamentally by the assistant referee, but it shouldn't
have been a try.

Speaker 5 (02:14):
So but now we find out and Mak it should
have been a try because between the foot being in
touch and the try.

Speaker 3 (02:22):
Posession, that's right, that's right, and and and the fact
that it's changed again since the most I guess, highly
scrutinized incident at the Rugby World Cup when the All
Blacks were disallowed to try you know, the two phases.
It gets even more complicated based on.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
If it's an.

Speaker 3 (02:41):
Obstruction or a penalty offense, let alone a foot in
touch or a knock on or a forward pass. So look,
I think we're trying to find perfection in an imperfect world. Personally,
I think they should have played, you know, played to
what they saw.

Speaker 2 (02:56):
It was clear and obvious.

Speaker 3 (02:58):
But at the same time, you know that the administrators
are determined to let the game flow and the fans
want that too in terms of television match official coming in.
So I just think when it's clear and obvious, which
it was, that that's when the TMO can jump in
rather than you know, all these spots and maybes or
shades of gray for very rare circumstances like what we

(03:20):
saw on the weekend.

Speaker 5 (03:21):
Just what actually is the problem here? Is it? Is
it the overly complicated rules or is it the TMO
involving themselves and then getting it wrong.

Speaker 4 (03:30):
Well, I think in this instance that and I mean,
keep's a good refer everything, but they missed. If they've
missed the foot and touch, that's where the problems started.
And I mean the rule seems relatively clear at least
if it's in the last attacking play, then yep, you
can ping it. And if it's not, and in this
case it's not, then you can't. So that would be
relatively clear cut. But as Nick mentions, they've flip flopped

(03:52):
around these sort of things right back, you know, you
go back to that World Cup vial, et cetera. It's
just and that's all just distraking fans, taking fans away
from the game, isn't it.

Speaker 5 (04:00):
Can I put something to you? Okay? So Angus Gardner
looks at it on the field and he goes, it's
a try, right, and then TMO goes, actually, hang on
a tank, let me go back clans. No, there was
a foot and touch. But if TMO wants to go
backwards and go, no, actually there was a foot in touch,
then why didn't TMO see that there was also a
change in possessions? You know what I mean? Like it's
it feels to me like if they had just not say,

(04:21):
if TMO didn't exist right now, we wouldn't even be
having this debate because the try would have been awarded
and it would have been the right call.

Speaker 4 (04:29):
Yeah, it's just it's just a clanger.

Speaker 5 (04:31):
It's AMO, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it is.

Speaker 3 (04:35):
It is.

Speaker 4 (04:36):
Okay, but then I've got to be able to But
then the original part of that is the foot should
have been picked up in touch before that.

Speaker 5 (04:42):
Yes, possibly, Okay, So here's the new clear option. Nick
that Elliott is trying to push this as Elliot Smith
and he knows as Rugger. He says, you've got to
get rid of the TMO altogether. What do you think?

Speaker 2 (04:54):
No, I disagree with Elliott on that.

Speaker 3 (04:57):
I think I think that we need to be very
clear and and I think that that Rugby is trying
its utmost to figure out the exact involvement of the team,
because I think we can all agree last year, in
the last couple of years, it was getting too much,
and it was it was ruining the flow of the game.
Fans were frustrated, players, administrators and so on. You know,
there seems to have tied it up that by and large,

(05:19):
but ultimately I actually think the problem and again I'd
have to go back and just clarify, but it came
up on the big screen as part of like the
broadcast replay, so that they put it up, everyone else
saw it, and then they had to act upon it.

Speaker 2 (05:32):
Because ultimately it's a put of Dutch. So that's where
I think clear and obvious.

Speaker 3 (05:36):
If it's clear and obvious, you know, we're not talking
about is that ford, is it mildly a forward pass?

Speaker 2 (05:42):
Is it a blade of grass between it?

Speaker 3 (05:44):
You know, lalamela lala, Milo's full right boot was on
that was on that pape, so that that's where that's
where it starts and finishes.

Speaker 2 (05:52):
For me, I think they're going some way to doing it.

Speaker 3 (05:55):
And and look, this is a problem for sport, not
only rugby, but you know, you look at football at.

Speaker 2 (06:00):
The moment you've got the involvement of the VAAR. You
look at you know, the.

Speaker 3 (06:04):
Increasement of technology and sport is something every every code
is trying to wrestle with. But ultimately you've got to
find that balance between over involvement and the absolute striving
for perfection when you know, just like players, officials and
referees make mistakes too.

Speaker 5 (06:24):
Now, all right, we'll take a break, come back with
you guys.

Speaker 1 (06:25):
In the tick the FRED Sports Title with New Zealand,
South of East International real Zy, the ones with local
and global reach.

Speaker 5 (06:33):
Right, you're back at the Sports title Andrew Ordison and
Nick Bewley. Orders, have you caught up with some run
at straight event business that's going on?

Speaker 4 (06:39):
I have indeed here. Yeah, it felt like, you know,
you're Marty McFly getting in the deloreum and going back
about thirty years. I mean, it's just we've had all
this evidence about concussion, CT etc. Brain damage. I mean
the trouble is if you if you get rid of
that though, I suppose that you're looking at boxing, you're
looking at MMA, what else would you ban I suppose?

(07:00):
I mean there was a crowd there.

Speaker 5 (07:01):
You can't ban it.

Speaker 4 (07:02):
You can just.

Speaker 5 (07:03):
Marvel at the stupidity, can't you.

Speaker 4 (07:05):
That's right exactly, That's that's my conclusion. If people want
to do that, I mean, then again you'd be funding
it as a tax pay later on when the you know,
the head injuries take their toll. But nonetheless, yeah, it's
just it just feels feels crazy to doing that.

Speaker 5 (07:20):
But I know I get out, Nick. I need you
to explain something to me though, because we had George Burgess,
the former Rabbit O on yesterday and he said, the
whole thing behind this is that it's like taking you
back to being in a war.

Speaker 3 (07:34):
You know.

Speaker 5 (07:35):
It's like it's like the same stuff that they were
doing with the warrior spirit and just running at each other.
What the hell is wrong with men that you people
have to do this kind of thing.

Speaker 3 (07:45):
Hey, don't, don't tarnish us all with the brush now here,
though some of us are.

Speaker 5 (07:52):
I've got a theory what I reckon is going on
is men. It's well known and documented that men love
risk more than a woman, right, But the world has
become too soft and there's not enough risk in the
world for you anymore. Like, what's the biggest risk that
you face Probably going home and not packing the dishwasher.
So what's happening is there's some blokes out there who
are creating risk.

Speaker 3 (08:12):
What do you think, Rocker, I can't get my head
around the run at straight continent, and to be perfectly honest,
I was going to hopeful we weren't going to give
it too much oxygen tonight.

Speaker 2 (08:22):
But look each to their own.

Speaker 3 (08:25):
If you want to put yourself in that situation, there's
absolutely no chance. I don't think these computitors or runners
would be doing if there wasn't a surprise buddy involved.

Speaker 2 (08:33):
They're not just doing.

Speaker 3 (08:33):
It's the warrior spirit, you know, There's there's something in
it for them. But yeah, it's not for me.

Speaker 5 (08:39):
Now. I feel really bad, don't you. Orders Like we've
got to stop talking about it or we're going to
be promoting it. Shame.

Speaker 4 (08:47):
Where's it going to end up? Is it going to
sort end up with a running man territory or you
know where we where do we finish all this? I mean,
it feels like a real circus ack this one. And
I just don't know just that you're right here. I
think you've just got to consign it to you know,
if you want to go and do that sort of stuff,
well good luck to you. But boy, it's just thing

(09:08):
like craziness.

Speaker 5 (09:09):
Nicholas, And tell me have you are you keen on
the Supercars event? That's coming down your part of the world.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
Look on no petrol head, But yeah, I think if
I have the time then I'll head along and look,
I'm really pleased for the motorsport community down here, particularly
at the Cannabury Car Club, who've put a lot of
work into to get this across the line. I'm fascinated
to see its level of interest. Like most things, I think,
you know, in a new addition to a sporting calendar,

(09:35):
there will be a bit of a novelty element for
the casuals and I think it'll be well supported initially.
I do wonder, you know, long term how sustainable it
could be with Topaul there as well. Look, you know,
working in the sports media business, I think it's fair
to say maybe outside of a New Zealand leg and
Bathurst Supercars, the interest for the casual sports observers probably

(09:58):
wighing to touch since this got McLaughlin Shane van Gisberg
in days. But then again, there's a young Kiwi driver
by the name of Matt Payne only twenty two years
of ages don't okay at the moment, so who knows,
might be sort of dawn of a new era to know,
you know, We're a very successful motorsport country when you
look at you know, some of our most successful drivers
around the world, Scott Dixon and the like and Leam

(10:18):
Lawson of course. So I'm I can't wait to see
how it goes, and I really hope it is a success.

Speaker 5 (10:24):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (10:24):
Same.

Speaker 5 (10:24):
Listen, guys, go and enjoy your weekend. Thank you so
much appreciated. Is Andrew Alderson and Nick Berley. Sportshital this evening.

Speaker 1 (10:30):
For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drave, listen live to
News Talks it'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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