Owen Doyle: Magnificent Ireland’s margin of victory should have been greater New Zealand were very fortunate not to have another player sent off and Ireland were denied a blatant penalty tryTue Jul 12 2022 - 05:00
Owen Doyle: Ireland look to have bitten off more than they can chew in New Zealand Injuries, Johnny Sexton’s failed HIA and losses in the opening two games leave backs against the wallTue Jul 05 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Champions Cup about to get a lot tougher for Irish teamsIntroduction of South African teams is going to radically change the successful formula of the European Champions CupMon Jun 27 2022 - 19:00
Owen Doyle: Referee eyes becoming more blind to foul play Greater TMO power in new World Rugby protocol only accelerates already prevalent trendTue Jun 21 2022 - 05:00
Owen Doyle: Adamson’s performance review in Stormers win to make for interesting readingOver the post or not, decision to not even review last kick given its magnitude a strange oneTue Jun 14 2022 - 05:00
Owen Doyle: Munster fail to learn lesson to play to the whistle Andrea Piardi is an interesting referee prospect but has a way to go yetTue Jun 07 2022 - 05:00
Owen Doyle: Why was Etzebeth cheap shot not a cheap shot?South African lock courted controversy for a collision with Lyon’s Davit Niniashvili in Challenge Cup finalTue May 31 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Referees damned if they do, damned if they don’t on red cardsThree finals is a huge achievement for Barnes and he is standing the test of timeTue May 24 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Referee’s performance didn’t affect outcome one jot at the AvivaAll in all it wasn’t a great weekend for the men in the middle in European semi-finalsTue May 17 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: You cannot depend on the TMO as a refereeLuke Pearce was late into in-goal for the first Munster try and he knew it tooTue May 10 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Professional game a dangerous place for amateur playersA non-stop Trojan effort due to ability gap raises a very serious player welfare issueTue May 03 2022 - 06:00
Continuation of foul play yet another shocking advert for rugbySurely now coaches must be held to account, and what are World Rugby doing?Tue Apr 19 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Unacceptable face of rugby was on full show over the weekendGibson-Park should’ve seen red as too many brutal collisions went far beyond legal limitsTue Apr 12 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Paltry suspensions for dangerous tackles need to be shown the red cardWhy not equate the length of suspension to the period of an injured player’s rehabilitationTue Apr 05 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Wayne Barnes’ loud continuous communication is over the topScotland captain Stuart Hogg could learn a lot about leadership from the ItaliansTue Mar 22 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Not even South Africa could've resisted England's illegal scrumReal question now for James Ryan is how many serious knocks to the head are enoughTue Mar 15 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: It’s clear that advantage law has become a contradiction of itselfA law interpreted differently depending on the position of play on the pitch is wrongTue Mar 08 2022 - 08:05
Owen Doyle: Full ramifications of uncontested scrum law an accident waiting to happenTo have anything written into law which reduces a team to 13 for one red card is daftTue Mar 01 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: No illusion, just simple physics behind Ntamack’s pass to DupontThe law of relative velocity was at play in the build-up to France’s opening tryTue Feb 22 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Ireland contributed massively to the championship’s best match so far‘Return’ match in the Aviva next season will be eagerly awaited by supportersTue Feb 15 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Dishonest scrummaging at Murrayfield not the referee’s faultBoth England and Scotland have been serial offenders in this aspect for too longTue Feb 08 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Control and communication important for Jaco PeyperSouth African is one of the most experienced on the circuitFri Feb 04 2022 - 16:00
Owen Doyle: Common sense must prevail to end Munster branch referee disputeStandoff between officials and organisers likely to shred trust and lifelong friendshipsTue Feb 01 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Adamson altered the outcome in Castres’ controversial defeatForward pass, legitimate jackal and clear lack of evidence all ignored in the end gameTue Jan 25 2022 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Champions Cup format needs a rethinkMontpellier’s collapse a sign of how quickly teams can lose interest in redesigned poolsTue Jan 18 2022 - 07:12
Owen Doyle: Johann van Graan’s long goodbye is to Munster’s detrimentProvince’s recent URC performances have been woeful - coaching change is neededTue Jan 11 2022 - 07:54
Owen Doyle: Respect match officials have always enjoyed is being chipped awayManner and timing of Johann van Graan’s Munster exit a huge disappointmentTue Dec 21 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Wayne Barnes rides his luck as Ulster register a famous victoryGood fortune decreed the right outcome but it could have been a very different storyTue Dec 14 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: World Rugby throws soft paperback at Tomas LavaniniRassie Erasmus to make documentary appearance while URC still has officiating holeMon Dec 06 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Weekend Tests show that referees should reach for their cards soonerMatches emphasise need to punish serial offenders and retain control of gameTue Nov 23 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Luke Pearce had a solid performance despite inappropriate use of ‘mate’Pearce stayed calm throughout a tense affair but caused confusion around Carbery’s kickTue Nov 16 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Japan win was refreshing but All Blacks will bring the heatThe intensity brought by New Zealand in Saturday’s Test will be off the Richter scalerTue Nov 09 2021 - 06:00
Foul play incidents leave World Rugby with plenty of unanswered questionsCentralised disciplinary system needs to be centralised under the sport’s governing bodyTue Nov 02 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: World Rugby’s sanction on Rassie Erasmus must fit crimeSouth African’s delayed hearing for rant during Lions tour is about to take placeTue Oct 26 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Lions pay a high price for key blunders by Williams and CurryPenalty call against Lawes harsh but butchered try-scoring chances lost itTue Aug 10 2021 - 01:00
Owen Doyle: Violence making rugby more nightmare than dreamUncontrolled levels of brutal force and uncontrolled aggression is not attractiveTue Aug 03 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Rassie Erasmus pushing the spirit of the laws to their absolute limitsThe first Test was a poor game of rugby and the ill-tempered build-up even worseMon Jul 26 2021 - 07:31
Owen Doyle: High tackles continue to be a very real problem for rugbyWorld Rugby’s tackling lessons plan a great idea but unlikely to change behaviourSat Jul 10 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Referee Luke Pearce far from perfect in fraught finalReferee was never far from the centre of attention, some of his own making, some notTue May 25 2021 - 01:00
Owen Doyle: Henshaw can count himself lucky his Lions dream is still a realityHard to see why the laws were not applied fully to his tackle on Robert BaloucouneTue May 18 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Mixed bag from referees in Europe but ‘latching’ must be outlawedTactic of two players running together at defensive line has very dangerous potentialTue May 04 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Opportunity knocks to make real change in IRFU governanceBrowne’s tenure has been very successful but old committee system could be alteredTue Apr 27 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Red card replacements would let sinners off the hookPlayers who are sent off can be replaced after 20 minutes under new Rainbow Cup trialTue Apr 20 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: IRFU should be encouraging representation for Irish refereesOfficials get a very raw deal that no player would acceptTue Apr 13 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Mixed bag from Wayne Barnes as he continues race for referee goldToulouse simply better than Munster while Amashukeli caught the eye in LondonTue Apr 06 2021 - 06:12
Owen Doyle: France may well benefit in the long run from Scotland defeatThe arrogance that has been wafting over the French set-up needed to be clearedTue Mar 30 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Bundee Aki is good but really needs to change technique‘Matey’ Luke Pearce and ‘Barnesy’ Wayne Barnes were utterly irritating in ParisTue Mar 23 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Scotland will feel aggrieved at Poite’s breakdown penaltiesBrace and Neville leave with heads held high after Twickenham thrillerTue Mar 16 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: New laws on Australian show could turn rugby union into leagueUnion’s struggle for popularity in Australia has seen new controversial rules adoptedTue Mar 09 2021 - 06:00
Owen Doyle: Culture of ‘clip memory’ among modern referees not cutting it on the pitchThere’s nothing to beat knowing the laws when you step out on the pitchSat Mar 06 2021 - 13:30
