Vodacom Bulls coach Johan Ackermann has called for clarity from officials after David Kriel’s late try was controversially ruled out against the Scarlets.
The Bulls thought they had sealed the result when Kriel finished in the corner in the 76th minute after a slick, multi-phase move and cross-kick from Willie le Roux.
The try was awarded and flyhalf Handré Pollard was lining up conversion when the TMO intervened to send play back for a forward pass earlier in the build-up.
“I felt we scored a great try,” Ackermann said after the match. “We were very disappointed that the try was disallowed. We will get clarity from the referees involved about how far we can go back.”
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Ackermann was left perplexed as the forward pass had happened several phases prior to the try being scored and he questioned how far back officials should be going.
“At the moment, for forward passes, we’ve got it that you can only go back two phases,” he said. “I think there were three or four phases involved.”
He also questioned whether the pass itself was forward.
“Depending on what hat you put on, you will say it is a forward pass,” Ackermann said. “If you put the Bulls hat on, you would say the ball travelled out of his hands backwards, so we need clarity on that.”
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A further concern was the time taken before the TMO review was initiated.
“The frustrating thing is they let so much time go past,” he said. “Even Handré’s full minute to take the conversion was almost gone before the referral started, and often they don’t put that time back.”
Ackermann stressed that, regardless of the ruling, his side still found a way to win, but the decision remained a source of frustration.
“Even with that disappointment and going all the way back, we still did enough to get the territory, the possession and the penalties to win the game,” he said.
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While the Bulls ultimately secured a 23-21 win – with Pollard slotting a 79th minute penalty – Ackermann admitted the outcome softened the reaction.
“We’re on the right side of the result, so you take it a bit easier,” he said. “But if we had lost, it would probably have been a big talking point.”
Photo: Kian Abdullah/Gallo Images
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