Not such a Goode day for ref Pearce

‘M a big Luke Pearce fan but must join the consensus that he-and his team of officials —didn’t enjoy the best of days at Northampton last week when the Saints staged their second-half comeback to defeat Saracens.

- BRENDAN GALLAGHER

There was clearly a forward pass in Saints’ dramatic late try - by any criteria and law interpretation past, present, future, real or imaginary - although I would add, it was nowhere as near as forward as the Eliott Daly pass that set up a try for Juan Martin Gonzalez in the first half.

Those two poor decisions sort of cancelled each other out, but I’ve never been a big fan of that philosophy. Over a season, that might possibly be the case but probably not. Italy for example, have always and will always get more duff calls than other Six Nations teams. They just do.

And over just 80 minutes, when that match means everything to one team and possibly a little less to the other side, it’s rarely the case.

I would much prefer that both had been picked up — and I doubt if that would have affected the excitement of the game one jot — and herein lies the fundamental flaw in the current leniency and latitude to such obvious forward passes.

Once a referee establishes a benchmark, that ‘norm’ can only ever be extended, not retracted. And that ensures more howlers, not fewer. Once the dye is cast in any particular game, it’s incredibly difficult, nigh impossible, to suddenly backtrack and start refereeing the actual law again. That only reiterates the original bad call and leaves you open to allegations of bias.

However, as it happens, I was more exercised by a couple of other strange calls at Franklin’s Gardens last week. Again, to reiterate, I rate Pearce and the way he usually goes about his work, and my criticisms are intended to be general and constructive.