The way the laws of Rugby Union are currently structured, there is a great deal of room for interpretation, and it is in the many interpretations of different referees that some teams will thrive and others will fall. For example, Australia play a style based on committing only a few forwards to each ruck and recycling the ball quickly. But if a particular referee allows their opponents to slow their ruck ball down, the Wallabies could crash out of the tournament.

Southern Hemisphere referees like Paul Honis or Jonathan Kaplan say very little on the field and allow teams to play without feeling the need to impose their presence on the game, while Northern Hemisphere officials such as Tony Spreadbury do a lot of talking to players and stamp their authority. Both these styles work well and are perfectly acceptable, but it will be up to each team to adapt to the style of the officials if they are to succeed.

As most of the Tri-Nations games were controlled by Southern Hemisphere refs, and most of the Six Nations by their Northern counterparts, teams will have to adjust to foreign refereeing styles for some games and revert to their regular style for others. IRB Referees' Manager Paddy O'Brien has prevented coaches and players from meeting with referees before games in an effort to prevent pressure from being put on officials, which seems to be a positive step.

'Cynical fans have suggested that certain touch judges are keen to get on television, and have become flag-happy'

A disturbing trend that has crept into the world of officialdom recently is the involvement of touch judges coming onto the field to report the most minor of incidents. The more cynical fans have suggested that certain touch judges are keen to get on television, and have become flag-happy.

An obvious example of this came in last weekend's Scotland vs Ireland game when a touch judge came on to report Irish flanker Neil Best for punching. Replays showed that while Best swung his arm near an opponent, he did not have his fist clenched, nor did he even make contact. Luckily for Best, the referee chose not to take any further action but on another day a bad decision could have been made worse by a yellow card and, if this happens in a knock-out game, it could be the end of the road for one team.

The other problem that has been creeping into refereeing is the constant referral of decisions to the Television Match Official (TMO). Even some of the most obvious decisions are referred upstairs for review, delaying the game unnecessarily when the right call is clear to everyone in the stadium and watching on television.