Nigel Owens: Rugby ref keeping order at the highest level

Martyn Thomas 15:46 30/01/2014
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  • Keeping order: Nigel Owens is one of the most trusted referees in world rugby.

    England and France are sure to keep referee Nigel Owens on his toes on Saturday night as they go in search of a potentially pivotal opening Six Nations win.

    The Welshman has been tasked with keeping order in Paris but that should not faze someone who has officiated at two World Cups in an eight-and-a-half year career at the top.

    With the Six Nations on the horizon, Owens and his colleagues were put through their paces by the International Rugby Board (IRB) in Dubai. So, Sport360° took the opportunity to catch up with the 42-year-old.

    How tough has the camp in Dubai been?

    It’s been tough, we’ve got to do the fitness testing, which is not easy it’s tough work and we have to train hard to reach the levels we have to. And as well, we haven’t had a lot of time, so it’s been a tough three days with something going on all the time.

    But that’s why we all come together, to thrash a few things out and have a common goal when we go and ref in the Six Nations.

    How important is it for referees to be in peak physical condition?

    It’s very important. The game has changed a lot in the last five years, and when you think how much it has changed in the last 10, 15, 20 years it’s beyond recognition really.

    Playing surfaces are better now so we know the speed of the game is quicker, teams are fitter, the ball-in-play time is higher. So as the players’ fitness and speed have increased we have to follow, we can’t stay where we are.

    We have to improve to keep up with the game as well. You have to stay with the pace of the game. I’m not quite sure how much the game will change again. There will be little changes but I can’t see players getting faster and bigger than they are now, maybe a little split second more but I can’t see it getting much faster.

    Now, maybe style of teams may change where they may run the ball more, there may be more ball-in-play time, that may well change but I can’t see the actual physicality of the players increasing a huge amount again like it’s done over the last 10 or 15 years.

    The problem we have as referees is we get older as well. So when you look at it, you’ve got players playing the game in their mid-20s, at their peak-level condition. I’ve got to maintain that at 42 years of age which is tough going.

    How hard is it to stay in the shape you need?

    It’s tough going, you’ve got to train hard. Unless you put the effort in and train hard and be strict on what you eat and rest well and prepare well, you’re not going to be able to do it.

    The game is professional now, the players are professional and the refs are professional as well. We have to be professional in our attitude and all of us are.

    What is your daily routine?

    It varies depending on when the games fall. You may have a game on a Sunday and then another game on a Friday. That will have an influence then on your training in that week. But usually in a week if the games are seven days apart, you train quite a hard session on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and then maybe have a recovery session and come down towards the end of the week to prepare for the game.

    During the season I usually do about two cardio sessions and then two, maybe three weight sessions as well. So you’re looking at training four to seven times a week. 

    Is a fitter referee a better referee?

    If you have the ability to be a good referee then if you’re fitter you will be better. But you may well have a referee who is much fitter than you are but that doesn’t make him better. So if you, as a referee, are fit enough to referee at the top level then that’s all you need. The fact that someone is quicker than you or can do a better level than you in the fitness test does not make him a better referee than you. But you have to be fit to referee that game, and if you’re not fit enough you won’t be good enough.

    How important is it to maintain a good relationship, and open communication, with your assistants?

    It’s very important. It’s very important that all of us get together here as a group of referees and assistant referees.

    We all referee at different levels on the international stage, some people here will only be assistants during the Six Nations but it’s important we all get together so when it comes to the game time, we as a group know exactly what we’re doing on a matchday. So if I’m refereeing France v England on Saturday, the referee who is reffing Ireland v Scotland on the following day is making the same decision, consistent with what I am doing. So, everyone knows what to expect.

    The nature of rugby union, the complexity of the game and human interpretation will mean that I may have a different view on something than someone else but those occasions are very isolated really.

    Do you notice a difference in intensity when you’re preparing to referee a tournament like the Six Nations?

    Yeah, there’s definitely a step up. When you go from the Pro 12, for example, to the Heineken Cup, there’s a step up and then when you go from the Heineken Cup to the internationals there is a step up as well.

    But some games in Europe will be as tough as some internationals, not as tough as the big internationals, but you can be refereeing two teams in the European Cup that may well have 26 to 30 international players on the park. So it will be Test match intensity.

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