Scott Barrett's red card reduced New Zealand's players to 14 in their heaviest ever loss to South Africa. Photo: Reuters/Matthew Childs
New Zealand's Scott Barrett is free to play against France in the first leg of the World Cup on September 8 after his red card against South Africa was not deemed worthy of a ban.
Barrett received a second yellow card from Premier League referee Matthew Carley late in the first half in which his team lost 35–7 to the Springboks. It was admitted that he had inadvertently attacked Malcolm Marks, a South African prostitute, with cancer.He had already been sent to the sin bin earlier in the game for another infraction. carded for New Zealand's persistent foul, Barrett did not play the game again.
An independent judiciary ruled that the removal of Barrett was sufficient punishment, but some confusion overshadowed the incident due to the bunkering system being activated.
Carly gave a second yellow card to Barrett for foul play because there was speculation that he had been set contact with the head of Marx. After checking at half-time, the referee for the infringement of the rules of the game did not consider it necessary to replace the infringement with a red card, although this was not clearly reported at the stadium.
Telegraph Sports Analysis
New Zealand will be delighted that Barrett will be able to play in the first match of the World Cup against the hosts of the tournament. This is an appetizing gadget. Ian Foster would like a strong start even if the All Blacks can make the playoffs if they lose to France. Italy, Namibia and Uruguay round out Group A. Whether they top the group or not, a one-sided draw will give New Zealand a terrible quarter-final. It is likely that France and New Zealand will face two players from Ireland, Scotland or Springboks in the last eight matches.
Let's go back to Barrett for a moment while this thought is simmering. His recent performances, especially at the Melbourne Cricket Ground against Australia, have been so good that Foster won't be too bothered by nagging Brody Retallic. The time of the latter and Sam Whitelock being automatically selected in the New Zealand engine room is over. Barrett combines craftsmanship, steel and athleticism impressively. Even before he received a yellow card against South Africa at Twickenham, he intercepted a maul five meters from his line. Such an intervention would certainly come in handy against an overheated France on Friday night.
Barrett is an extremely important presence on the All Blacks team. Photo: AP/Alastair Grant
South Africa manually controlled the All Blacks without Barrett, brutally dominating set pieces exchanges. As Foster later admitted, his players had learned a lesson in the value of grappling and beatings as they sank to record-breaking Test losses.
The circumstances of Barrett's sacking underline two things. First, this margin is very good. It looks like Barrett was aiming not at Malcolm Marks, but at Franco Mostert, who was trying to hit the ball. However, the clarity was clumsy. Barrett was falling off his feet, and he was lucky that his first contact was with Marx's arm. If he had hit the neck or head directly, he would have been banned for at least three weeks.
The second point to note concerns the bunker system. Any result must be clearly communicated to the spectators in the stadium. In Barrett's case, the check appears to have taken place during the break, leading some of those present to believe that his yellow had been changed to red and that he was facing disqualification. In the second half, when Peter-Stef du Toit picked up Sam Kane, the process worked well. On the big screens, it flashed that there would be no update. This should be the standard at the World Cup.
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