Naturally, we like to focus on all things Rugby League here at TotalRL.com. After all, it’s what we specialise in! But having had this video brought to our attention on social media, we simply felt compelled to share it with you.
Referees – and video referees, for that matter – get a lot of stick at times. Some of it is merited, whilst a lot of it is very much unmerited. However, those Rugby League referees who may lose the odd bit of sleep due to a howler made on the field might sleep a bit easier tonight, after witnessing this howler from ‘the other code’.
We’re not entirely sure, but we think it might be the first ever “own try” ever scored in both codes of rugby. You might ask yourself, how do you score an “own try”? It’s impossible, surely? Not if you watch this video.
It came during a rugby union game in Australia, between the North Harbour Rays and the Sydney Stars. Confusingly, both teams had yellow on their kit, but the stars were playing predominantly in yellow. The Rays however, had a yellow sleeve on their kit, which obviously led to the confusion that followed.
Rays’ forward Mitch Lewis placed the ball back over his own line whilst in a ruck, waiting for one of his teammates to pick it up and (probably) kick it clear. However, confusion reigned supreme when the referee asked for the video ref to take a look at a potential try.
The confusion got even worse; despite it clearly being Lewis putting the ball behind his own line, the video referee mistakenly thought it was an opposition player who had grounded it – and awarded the try.
So, by our reckoning, we think the Rays’ Mitch Lewis is the first ever player to score a try for the opposition – which is why we’re calling it an “own try”!
