Three yellow cards were dished out for separate incidents in a single stoppage in Saturday night’s Super Rugby Pacific clash at Suncorp Stadium.
Queensland Reds front-rowers Josh Nasser (no-arms tackle), Harry Hoopert (late tackle) and Fijian Drua prop Samuela Tawake (tip tackle) were all dismissed to a suddenly crowded sin bin in the first half of the round-four clash.
Referee Jordan Way was guided by assistants Nic Berry and Reuben Keane and TMO Brett Cronan during a lengthy review process that drew groans from the Nine and Stan Sport commentary box.
Watch every game of the 2022 Super Rugby Pacific season, streaming ad free, live and on demand only on Stan Sport. Sign up for your free seven day trial!
“Never seen it,” a stunned Sean Maloney said.
“Never seen three yellow cards in 30 seconds. Maybe the last time was the Waratahs against the British and Irish Lions off the back of Duncan McRae’s night out (in 2001).”
Former Wallaby Morgan Turinui quipped the officials were “still working out the mathematics of who goes where”, but he had some sympathy for their position.
READ MORE: Why Cheika couldn’t say no to Argentina Rugby World Cup challenge
READ MORE: Super Rugby champions stunned by Chiefs in crazy comeback
READ MORE: Brumbies maintain unbeaten start with triumph over winless Rebels
“Over-arching all of this is they are World Rugby laws and directives that they are obliged to put in place,” Turinui said.
Two-time Rugby World Cup winner Tim Horan said World Rugby was moving proactively to ward off the elephant in the room.
“They’re looking a long way down the track with potential lawsuits,” Horan said.
‘Lightning’ Petaia shreds Drua
“It’s happening in NFL, it’s going to happen in rugby. How far do you go?”
Another Wallabies great, Drew Mitchell, said rugby was shooting itself in the foot.
“I’m empathetic to the referees because, by the letter of the law, by process, they’ve got it right,” Mitchell said.
NEW PODCAST! Sean Maloney and Andrew Mehrtens are joined by Ireland’s surprise new Aussie star Mack Hansen and pick their ‘Weird Cat XV.’ Subscribe here!
“My frustration is more with World Rugby.
“It takes the pulse out of the game and is having too much of an impact.”
The Reds went on to win 33-28 in a thriller as the Drua launched a spirited comeback after trailing four tries to none at one stage.
Drua’s beautiful pre-game hymn
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
Australian rugby greats share classic stories and relive major controversies on Stan Sport’s Glory Days series
