Super Rugby officials hit back at claims Reds were dudded in controversial loss

Super Rugby officials have hit back at claims they didn't review all angles during a controversial no-try decision during the Reds' narrow loss to the Chiefs on Friday night, saying protocols were correctly - and accurately - followed.

Second-year New Zealand referee Marcus Playle and his team of officials were booed off Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane following the Reds' 31-21 loss. The defeat effectively ended the Reds' hopes of finishing in the top three – and securing a precious home quarter-final.

The Reds were on the wrong end of a 12-5 penalty count, but the controversy extended well beyond that.

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Indeed, fans – and the players – were livid on the stroke of half-time when Playle deemed Seru Uru to be held up.

Playle then blew for half-time when after television match official (TMO) Glenn Newman said there was "nothing clear" to overturn the on-field decision of "no try".

But another television angle on the big screen and on television left commentators and players equally perplexed.

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Two-time World Cup winner Tim Horan was left aghast in commentary for Stan Sport saying, "How can there be nothing clear?"

He wasn't the only one left puzzled, with Matt Burke saying the ball went down "for sure".

While Stan Sport expert Morgan Turinui questioned why officials were in such a rush to end the match, given the high-stakes nature of the match and the narrow 10-7 lead the Chiefs held.

"I think they got impatient," he said.

"TMO Glenn Newman had to get his referee [group] to hold their horses and take the time to get it right. We want the game to speed up, but it's half-time.

"That is a crucial decision that has huge ramifications for this game, the ladder, the whole competition, and that's an easy one they should have got right."

It led to the Reds stepping in over the weekend, with QRU chiefs executive David Hanham stating his team were hoping for answers into the incident – and many others.

On Monday afternoon, the governing body hit back and reiterated that there was not enough evidence to determine whether the ball had landed on – or over – the line.

"It was confirmed the television match official viewed all available angles of the play while reviewing the on-field decision," the statement read.

"The TMO identified evidence the ball had been grounded however could not find clear and obvious evidence the ball was grounded on or over the tryline, which would be required to overturn the on-field decision."

It's not clear if Playle, who was officiating his eighth Super Rugby match, will be given the whistle again this weekend.

It wasn't just the no-try that left Reds officials scratching their heads, but the moment that led to the match-winning try in the 78th minute.

Looking to run the ball out of their 22-metre zone, the Reds were pinged at the breakdown when outside centre Josh Flook was deemed to be coming in from the side for a cleanout on Chiefs skipper Luke Jacobson.

But Turinui said the decision was wrong.

"The first infringement is Jacobson off his feet," he said in commentary for Stan Sport. "It's a penalty to the Reds. But they've got 14 wrong in the last ten minutes, so I'm not surprised."

It's believed the Reds were just as frustrated by another blunder seconds later, with officials missing a blatant tackle off the ball from Jacobson on opposing back-rower Harry Wilson that allowed Chiefs No.8 Wallace Sititi to make a clean run to the tryline. The converted try sealed the Chiefs' 10-point win.

Earlier, with the match evenly poised, Turinui said he was surprised that such an inexperienced trio of officials were allowed to take charge of such an important match.

"Truthfully, I think it's a really poor refereeing appointment by Super Rugby," he said.

"They've missed a couple of high shots from the Reds on Chiefs players, they've missed a lot of knock-ons and errors, too many for a game of this importance."

Reds captain Fraser McReight was clearly frustrated on the field, but the star breakaway refused to blame officials for the loss and said his side needed to take the referee out of the picture.

"It's a tough one," he said.

"Regardless of those positions, I think us as players can take better ownership of that and understand the circumstances. We don't really want to get held up there and take it out of the refs hands and score it in [open play]."

The Friday result was significant in more ways than one, with New Zealand's sides now firmly entrenched in the top four.

It means Australia's sides will likely have to make history if they are to snap the nations' 12-year Super Rugby drought, with no Australian side ever winning a finals match on New Zealand shores, let alone multiple matches.

After starting the weekend in fourth spot, the Reds (27) slumped to sixth on the Super Rugby standings by the end of the round with the Crusaders (32) and Brumbies (29) leapfrogging Kiss's side.

While the Reds only hold a three-point lead over the seventh-placed Highlanders in the six-team playoff series, Kiss's side will be confident of climbing up the standings over the final three rounds of the regular season.

The Reds this weekend take on the much-improved Western Force on Saturday night, before finishing the regular season by taking on the bottom-placed Moana Pasifika across the ditch and ninth-placed Fijian Drua at home.