Nigel Owens says that World Rugby want to get rid of cynical acts while weighing in on Luc Ramos\u2019 decision to yellow-card Maro Itoje.<\/p>\n
The England captain was sent to the sin bin for slapping the ball out of Italy\u2019s Alessandro Fusco\u2019s hands when the scrum-half attempted to pass the ball away from a maul.<\/p>\n
His sanction came at a pivotal time in the fixture as England<\/a> held an 18-16 advantage and in his absence, Leonardo Marin scored a try to put the Azzurri<\/a> on course for their maiden victory over the Red Rose and ultimately they held on to seal a 23-18 win.<\/p>\n Itoje\u2019s<\/a> actions have been slammed by many fans and pundits, whilst others feel that the lock was hard done by, but Owens believes that Ramos made the correct decision.<\/p>\n He even caveated his take by stating that a yellow card would have been warranted before World Rugby<\/a> made the law change that protects scrum-halves.<\/p>\n In 2024, the game\u2019s governing body implemented law trials aimed at protecting the nine to enable more ball in flow from base of rucks, mauls and scrums.<\/p>\n Law 15.18 now reads: \u201cA player who is, or was part of the ruck may not play an opponent who is near it (within 1m), and who is attempting to play the ball away. Sanction: Penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n Law 16.18 reads: \u201cA player who is, or was part of the maul may not play an opponent near it (within 1m), and who is attempting to play the ball away.\u00a0 Sanction: Penalty\u201d<\/p>\n And law 19.30a: \u201cOnce play in the scrum begins, the scrum-half of the team not in possession: a. Takes up a position near the scrum,\u00a0no further than the centre line of the tunnel.\u201d<\/p>\n Maro Itoje\u2019s yellow card<\/p>\n 16.18 is the relevant law in Itoje\u2019s case and before the changes, Owens revealed that the England lock was effective in spoiling the opposition\u2019s ball.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, it is,\u201d Owens replied when asked if a yellow card was a fair decision on World Rugby\u2019s Whistle Watch show<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, when I was a referee, that was something that he did a lot in the game. He was very good at it. He was getting in lineout and maul set-ups, he would get it because he is quite a big, tall guy, he\u2019d get his hand around and sometimes he\u2019d get hold of that ball or hold of the player\u2019s arm and the player would lose the ball or sometimes he\u2019d knock the ball on or Itoje would knock it towards his own goal line which obviously would be perfectly legal.<\/p>\n \u201cThat has changed now and it\u2019s the same as a ruck. You cannot play a nine now within that metre if you\u2019re still part of that maul or ruck. So he can\u2019t reach over now and once the ball comes away with the nine, grab the nine and pull him in.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t do that anymore if you\u2019re in that maul. So that\u2019s also illegal now. But the key thing here as well, even if they hadn\u2019t changed that law, it still would have been a yellow card because it certainly looks like the ball does travel forward.<\/p>\n Opinion: The issues blighting England and the one statement that says everything<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSo he goes to knock the ball and it does look like the ball actually goes forward. So that\u2019s an offence within itself. So there are two things there.<\/p>\n \u201cOne, he deliberately knocks the ball forward, which would have been a penalty, yellow card anyway and two, the new law that changed two years ago I think where you can\u2019t be in the maul and once the ball comes away, grab the guy back in or attack somebody else, you\u2019re in the maul.<\/p>\n \u201cSo pretty clear, straightforward yellow card there to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n Prior to Itoje\u2019s sin-binning, Italy hooker Giacomo Nicotera gave a perfect example of the update to Law 15.18 concerning the rucks as he dislodged the ball from Ben Spencer\u2019s grasp as the scrum-half attempted to pass the ball. He too was penalised and yellow-carded.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very similar to the Itoje one, cynical, although this is a ruck not a maul. He\u2019s part of that ruck and as the nine comes away he just then goes to knock it out of his hand. So he can\u2019t do that,\u201d Owens explained.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce you\u2019re in the ruck, you can\u2019t touch that nine and can\u2019t do anything when you are off your feet in that ruck. So again, cynical and again pretty straightforward yellow card.\u201d<\/p>\n