Wayne Barnes wades into the heated debate over Jac Morgan’s Lions clear-out of Carlo Tizzano
Referee Andrea Piardi in conversation with Lions' Maro Itoje and Harry Wilson of the Wallabies
Retired referee Wayne Barnes has given his verdict on the hotly debated Jac Morgan clear-out in the lead-up to Hugo Keenan’s series-clinching try for the British and Irish Lions.
The Wallabies were on the cusp of a series-levelling win in Melbourne on Saturday when there was a breakdown collision in the home team’s 22 involving Morgan and Carlo Tizzano. With play continuing, the attack ended with Keenan dramatically crossing the line to seal the 29-26 comeback win.
After the initial celebrations came the result confirming discussion from the officials, who decided that Morgan’s clear-out was legal, that there was no foul play case to answer… and the Lions’ party could begin in earnest.
Barnes, the 2023 Rugby World Cup final referee, watched the action unfold from his living room in the UK, and he has now written about his take on the Morgan incident in his latest Daily Telegraph column that reviews the refereeing decisions made on the tour.
“A sense of relief on my sofa…”
His conclusion? Relief. At the heart of Barnes’ review of the Morgan/Tizzano collision was an emphasis “that every time there is head contact, it does not mean that there is foul play”.
There was also an acknowledgement that the officials had a “wonderful feel for the game”, illustrated by strong on-field decision-making throughout the match, and it was left to the video ref to work in the background to ensure they hadn’t dropped a clanger.
“Wind forward to the last play of the match, and that on-field decision-making was still evident,” he wrote, having begun by highlighting how quickly the on-field officials had called the knock-on without TMO review when Jack Conan dived over the line in the first half.
“When the team of officials met in the middle of the pitch to discuss the match-defining incident, with 90,000 spectators listening to every single word, (Andrea) Piardi began by explaining that Jac Morgan and Carlo Tizzano arrived at the same time.
Andy Farrell addresses controversial Jac Morgan clear-out in British and Irish Lions victory
“(Ben) O’Keeffe added to the dramatic discussion that ‘it was dynamic’ and Morgan was ‘wrapping’. Piardi then summarised the thoughts of all three – ‘It’s play-on for us’.
“When Piardi announced the decision of his team over the stadium PA system – a great addition to international rugby, by the way – there was a deluge of noise at the MCG. And there was also a sense of relief on my sofa.
“Dan Biggar, on Sky Sports’ commentary, asked: ‘Where could he go?’ and when Ronan O’Gara was asked what he was seeing, he replied quickly: ‘Very little.’ I couldn’t have agreed more with the two ex-internationals.
“Rugby is a dynamic game with lots of moving parts and yes, player safety is at the heart of everything the game is currently doing, but these things happen. It’s worth re-emphasising that every time there is head contact, it does not mean that there is foul play…
“In post-match discussions, fans and pundits have suggested that the Aussie replacement made the most of the contact, some even going as far as saying Tizzano dived.
“As someone who didn’t like tackling, let alone jackalling, I’m not going to pretend to know what being cleared out by someone who is 100kg running at full tilt feels like.
“What I do know is that many people will have their own opinions about the final decision, but I thought it was a decision that showed these three officials have a wonderful feel for the game.”
