Rugby ‘broken’ by officiating and long games – Ferris

In a game that lasted more than two hours, Ireland received five yellow cards from the referee.

Sam Prendergast, Jack Crowley, Andrew Porter, and Paddy McCarthy were all sent to the sin-bin for a violation after James Ryan’s yellow card was upgraded to a 20-minute red card as the hosts played with 12 players for 10 minutes in the second half.

And Ferris, who has won 35 international caps, claims that World Rugby needs a thorough evaluation to address the escalating stop-start nature of international rugby matches.

He told BBC Sport NI’s Stephen Watson, “Western rugby needs to find a way to not make a game of rugby 132 minutes long.”

“We have to make it quick and easy because a lot of people have messaged me saying they got bored while watching the game, especially when you’re trying to bring kids, and that’s when it can be short at times.

What did the other 52, 000 Aviva members think when they saw the game as broken because I had no idea what was happening and if I had no idea what was happening sitting on the sidelines, was that what they thought? Simply put, it was chaos.

In what Ferris described as “disappointing” November for Andy Farrell’s side, Ireland won the Autumn Nations Series with two victories (over Japan and Australia) and two losses (against New Zealand and South Africa).

In Paris, they will not play again until February when they take on French champions France in their opening Six Nations game. Ferris acknowledged that Les Bleus and England are currently in better shape than Ireland to challenge for the title.

“I think there are always concerns when you look at other teams who are doing really well and look to be further ahead this Rugby World Cup cycle,” he continued.

“Six Nations is about achieving the highest level, and Ireland’s goal is to win.” There is a lot of money to be won, which helps to pay for the union and relieves pressure.