Legendary former Test referee Nigel Owens has weighed in on a series of controversial decisions made during Wales’ narrow Six Nations defeat to Scotland on Saturday.
Steve Tandy’s side came so close to ending their dismal losing run in the championship as they led Scotland for the vast majority of the game, with tries from Rhys Carre and Josh Adams seeing them head into half-time in Cardiff with a 17-5 lead. But it was to be late heartbreak for Wales as George Turner’s 75th minute try sealed a 23-26 win for the visitors.
It was a much-improved performance from Tandy’s men, who have been on the receiving end of some incredibly heavy defeats in recent times. But, having led for all but the final five minutes of the contest, there was much frustration from those in red jerseys that they could not see out the win, with their nearly-three year losing run in the Six Nations continuing.
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In the wake of the contest at the Principality Stadium, much attention has been drawn to a series of incidents in the final 15 minutes of the match that arguably helped momentum shift from Wales to Scotland, with controversial decisions made by referee Matthew Carley sparking debate.
The first of these came in the 65th minute, with Scotland trailing 23-19 having closed the gap through tries from Finn Russell and Darcy Graham less than 10 minutes earlier. With Wales on the attack, they won a penalty advantage on the Scottish 22 and, after Jarrod Evans’ speculative cross-field kick to wing Louis Rees-Zammit went into touch, play was brought back for the Welsh penalty.
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However, while Evans thought he was going to have an opportunity for a kick at goal and, crucially, extend his side’s lead by three points, Carley was alerted to an earlier incident by his TMO, with Welsh scrum-half Tomos Williams alleged to have performed an illegal ‘croc roll’ on Scotland’s Rory Darge.
On viewing replays of the incident, Carley agreed that foul play had occurred and the penalty was reversed in Scotland’s favour. But Owens was not convinced.
“He’s got to grab him and he’s got to twist him,” the refereeing icon said on the BBC’s coverage of the match. “He doesn’t really… I’m not sure to be honest. I think that’s a bit harsh to be honest.
“It’s consistent, they did penalise one in the first half for a very similar action. But I’m not seeing a grab and a croll roll twist, he’s more pulling him down to the ground. So, bit harsh I thought.”
As Scotland cleared their lines, Williams was seen remonstrating with assistant referee Karl Dickson, but there was to be more controversy moments later as Wales tried to escape their own half through Louis Rees-Zammit.
The full-back looked for a way through the Scottish defensive line but was sent crashing backwards by a huge hit from opposition captain Sione Tuipulotu, with the ball spilling from his grasp before he tipped it backwards to Joe Hawkins.
However, it was to get worse for Wales as Carley judged Rees-Zammit to have flicked the ball onto Hawkins while on the ground, with Scotland awarded another penalty in a key position and subsequently kicking to the corner.
It was marginal, but replays suggested that the Wales back had in fact played the ball before hitting the ground, with Owens stepping in again to give his opinion on social media after the match.
“Looks bit harsh,” he wrote in response to a clip of the incident on X. “He seems to play the ball just before he hits the ground. So it would be a play on for me.”
Finally, Scotland’s winning try has also sparked controversy, with Turner bundling over the line as a Scottish maul off the back of a lineout saw the visiting pack overpower Wales from the five-metre line.
The replacement hooker burst over the line from behind number eight Matt Fagerson, with the Scottish back-rower driving back Wales’ Archie Griffin to open up a gap for his team-mate to dive through. However, closer inspection of the move after the full-time whistle suggested that Fagerson had joined the maul illegally by joining in front of the ball-carrier, Turner.
Under World Rugby law 16.7b, players joining a maul must do so from an onside position and by binding on to the hindmost player in the maul, with failing to do so seeing a penalty awarded to the opposing team.
However, it was missed by referee Matthew Carley, who was on the opposite side of the maul, and was not flagged by either the TMO or the assistant on the near touchline, with fans arguing that Wales were “ripped off” as the decisive try was allowed to stand.
In the wake of the contest in Cardiff, Owens suggested that Fagerson indeed should have been penalised, as he responded “Yes, I agree” to a post on X which read: “For Scotland’s maul try, Matt Fagerson joined in front but wasn’t penalised. I’m sure this was refereed more strictly some years ago but not so much now.”