Owen Doyle

Contributor

Owen Doyle, a contributor to The Irish Times, is a former Test referee and former director of referees at the Irish Rugby Football Union.

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Owen Doyle: Ireland v South Africa was a poisonous match, but don’t blame the referee

If Aviva Stadium debacle doesn’t convince World Rugby to fix the sport, nothing will

Mon Nov 24 2025 - 06:00

Owen Doyle: Referee laboured long and hard yet still got Springboks red-card call wrong

Poor discipline and a measure of bad luck contributed to costly one-point loss

Mon Nov 17 2025 - 18:32

Outcry over Lood de Jager red card shows rugby chiefs need to take a stand

Rugby chiefs must hold their nerve and empower officials to punish dangerous on-field acts

Mon Nov 10 2025 - 19:01

Owen Doyle: Unwarranted Tadhg Beirne dismissal highlighted a problem in rugby officiating

Foul play review officer seemed to be the only person in Soldier Field who thought incident merited a red

Mon Nov 03 2025 - 18:55

Owen Doyle: The frequency of nasty injuries in elite matches is a concern

Pick and drives lead to the brain of hookers like Dan Sheehan taking repeated hits

Mon Oct 27 2025 - 17:43

Owen Doyle: Why are we persisting with Mike Adamson and his perplexing decisions?

Referee’s performance in Connacht game was not up to the required standard

Mon Oct 20 2025 - 20:02

Owen Doyle: Modern lineouts are a nonsense – here’s why they need to change

England’s skill in 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning manoeuvre a far cry from what we see today

Mon Oct 13 2025 - 16:23

Owen Doyle: It is nonsense that Berthoumieu’s biting sanction was reduced for apologising

Ireland’s Aoife Wafer was bitten by flanker in the World Cup defeat to France

Tue Sept 16 2025 - 19:58

Owen Doyle: French determination to ensure a straight throw-in to the scrum a bold, welcome initiative

It’s not simply about the scrum-half delivering a straight ball. The mechanics of the scrum must also change to ensure the hooker can strike safely

Tue Aug 12 2025 - 06:00

Owen Doyle: Dan Sheehan should have got a red card and a longer ban for dangerous strike

The third Test between the Lions and Australia was a rugby travesty

Tue Aug 05 2025 - 06:00

Owen Doyle: Why Jac Morgan’s clear out of Carlo Tizzano was not obvious foul play

No consistency in refereeing between the two hemispheres is causing problems

Mon Jul 28 2025 - 14:52

Tom Curry walked tightrope in first Lions Test, but maybe he knew tackle would go unpunished

Referee inconsistencies laid bare in Lions clash, but it wasn’t the worst-offending match of the weekend

Mon Jul 21 2025 - 18:50

Owen Doyle: Lions tour has shown that TMO protocol is in serious need of review

The lineout problem is raising its ugly head again

Mon Jul 14 2025 - 18:28

Owen Doyle: For the good of the Lions tour, referees need to stop ignoring the rules of rugby

Waratahs clash was the scene of more strange and troubling decisions

Mon Jul 07 2025 - 19:39

First game of Lions tour showed why the lineout is heading for same farcical fate as the scrum

Referees’ consistent failure to penalise violations is cheapening the lineout

Mon Jun 30 2025 - 17:53