"The great fallacy is that the game is first and last about winning. It is nothing of the kind. The game is about glory, it is about doing things in style and with a flourish, about going out and beating the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom." Danny Blanchflower.
Might have been written by a footballer about football - but never a truer word............
I think the difference is that when I played, there was always someone breathing down your neck for your place, unfortunately with referees we don't have that luxury. I take your point about maybe harming his confidence, but I think the major harm would be to his ego. But you can't just sanction the type of errors that were mad on Saturday. I don't get to see any championship rugby, so know nothing about those referees, but how do those guys get a chance if the current crop in SL are permanent fixtures regardless of performance. Although I have never been a Childs fan, I think the way he was treated was a worse decision than just letting Hicks carry on.