England's Summer Of Cricket against New Zealand and AUSTRALIA!

[Shaggy]

No your points are fine ...I understand. I just don't agree. I like DRS and it has been and will undoubtedly be good for the game. The system is good but I don't agree with some of the processes nor the umpires' deployment of it. And it would obviously help if the umpires weren't total idiots.

My eyes told me it was hitting the stump but moreover Hawkeye demonstrated it was hitting the stump pretty much flush.

Umpire's call seems to be there to protect the umpires as much as anything else and I don't think it's right. "Okay the umpire got it wrong but he was only wrong by a bit so we'll let it slide"

[Shaggy]

Alec Stewart suggested that when DRS shows the ball is "clipping" the stump then even though the not out decision shouldn't be overturned, the bowling side shouldn't be penalised by losing an appeal (if you see what I mean). Obviously there are similar circumstances when the batting side doesn't get the out decision overturned but could also not be punished by losing their appeal.

So the margin for error/umpire's call doesn't doubly penalise the appealing side.

It probably overcomplicates things further but it's an interesting suggestion. I don't think it would do what he thinks though, i.e. reduce some of the frustrations around DRS.

Posted as much the other day...it seems crazy to punish a team with a lost review when according to the entrusted technology they have been justified in using a referral.

[Hollowman]

The margin of error is actually more than half a ball. 51% of the ball must be inside the exact centre of the outside stump. It is quite a big margin to be honest, and at the very least I don't think teams should lose a referral if they're within it but don't overturn the call.

I'm a big advocate of DRS, obviously, but I'm not sure how I feel about it becoming the primary umpiring tool. I like a decision to be made on the field. I think replay technology in sport usually works better when a concrete decision has to be made in most instances before it can be replayed. Otherwise we're going to get umpires refusing to back their own judgement and just sending everything to the third umpire. In fact, the third umpire will be the main umpire in that case. The chaps on the field will just be there to guide the players, count balls, and hold hats.

I'm the same with technology in football. I don;t like this goalline **** as the number of times it is required renders it a boondoggle. But I like the idea of another official in a replay booth, as long as a decision is first made on the pitch.

Of course, that being the case we also need transparency from officials and organising bodies on decisions that are made, and an end to overreactions to refereeing decisions (i.e. the FA be allowed to fess up to refereeing blunders without sending a ref down for a week, and managers not be allowed to mouth off about referees before or after matches).

Possibly straying from the topic now.

[Neil Young]

What the analysis of DRS misses out is what is the effect on decision-making of the use of DRS.

Maybe that's what we're seeing at the moment with all these terrible umpiring decisions.

Of course it's more likely the umpires are just in a bad run of decisions and that is bound to happen every so often - statistics innit - but it's worth keeping an eye on whether having trial by DRS actually affects umpires' capacity to make the right decision in the first place.

[Shaggy]

Well DRS has been in use for how long...since about 2009? 4 years at the most. I have honestly never noticed a team of umpires (as opposed to the odd one in isolation - Billy Bowden was so bad they dropped him from the elite list) have such a disastrous time of it as these four are in the Ashes. I just think it's one of those things.

[Neil Young]

I think that's probably right. It's an interesting thought though and the principle applies a lot more widely than just DRS and cricket.

Of course DRS could actually improve on-field decisions. Somehow.

Not with this shower though.

[Chazza]

They also need to have a look at the elite list and not allowing umpires from the countries playing to be involved.

For the next seven ashes tests only Dar, Dharmasena, Erasmus and Hill can umpire and none of them have been very good.

Elite Panel Umpires - 2013-14
Aleem Dar
Steve Davis
Kumar Dharmasena
Marais Erasmus
Ian Gould
Tony Hill
Richard Illingworth
Richard Kettleborough
Nigel Llong
Bruce Oxenford
Paul Reiffel
Rod Tucker

[Shaggy]

Yep **** that **** off - we could have one from Australia, one from England and a neutral third umpire.

[Neil Young]

But remember why neutral umpires were brought in?

Obviously it's a real problem at the moment but a return to the old system brings its own problems. I guess the third umpire does help defuse the issue to some extent.

[Shaggy]

But remember why neutral umpires were brought in?

Obviously it's a real problem at the moment but a return to the old system brings its own problems. I guess the third umpire does help defuse the issue to some extent.

Yeah...Dickie Bird and David Shepherd

Yes, the third umpire and the technology now makes it pretty different to the old days when we had no real insight into difficult LBW decisions, edges etc made by 'home' umpires.

[Hollowman]

**** me. The boo-hooing we get off these cunts at the moment over decisions, can you imagine the total vaginapocalypse that would occur if there was an English umpire involved?

[Shaggy]

Fair point

[Liverpool]

Why would any batsman do it? Sure it might disguise an edge and fool Hotspot, but it increases the chances of being given out LBW - so it would be completely pointless and brainless.

They could just do the one for the outside edge to the slip, and leave the other edge to get the inside nick for lbw Couldn't someone just run their finger along the bat before the batsman comes out to check

[Liverpool]

They also need to have a look at the elite list and not allowing umpires from the countries playing to be involved.

For the next seven ashes tests only Dar, Dharmasena, Erasmus and Hill can umpire and none of them have been very good.

Elite Panel Umpires - 2013-14
Aleem Dar
Steve Davis
Kumar Dharmasena
Marais Erasmus
Ian Gould
Tony Hill
Richard Illingworth
Richard Kettleborough
Nigel Llong
Bruce Oxenford
Paul Reiffel
Rod Tucker

I saw something about them officiating more matches than ever, should bring in the lower level umpires for lesser games if its taking its toll

[Neil Young]

**** me. The boo-hooing we get off these cunts at the moment over decisions, can you imagine the total vaginapocalypse that would occur if there was an English umpire involved?