Rugby must adopt time limits on stoppages in play, if it is to avoid scenes like last week's controversial ending to the Bledisloe Cup opener at Melbourne, says All Blacks legend Sir John Kirwan.
After rallying from 18 points down midway through the second half, Australia seemed to have victory over the All Blacks in hand, with first-five Bernard Foley preparing to kick for touch from a penalty in the final seconds.
But the game was turned on its head, when referee Mathieu Raynard called Foley for time-wasting - not for the first time during the contest - and awarded New Zealand an attacking scrum, from which fullback-turned-midfielder Jordie Barrett scored the winning try in a 39-37 outcome.
Raynard's decision has sparked understandable outrage on the other side of the Tasman and beyond, with many suggesting he choked under the pressure of such a close finish, but Kirwan has told Sky's Breakdown that time-wasting has become a common strategy in rugby, which must be stamped out, if the game is to retain fan support.
"It's not Foley's fault, it's not the referee's fault," said Sir John. "Everyone is time-wasting around the world in test-match rugby - props are going down, the game's being slowed up or there's encroaching at the lineout - I've just never seen it enforced before.
"Was the referee right - yes. Was the decision wrong - if you're a New Zealand no, if you're Australian yes.
"The trouble is you can't leave stuff like time-wasting to interpretation."
Kirwan advocates the introduction of strict time limits like those used in other sports like basketball, where teams have a finite amount of time to inbound the ball, cross halfway and put up a shot.
In tennis, players must serve within 30 seconds of the previous point. In rugby league, kickers have a limit on how long they can take for attempts on goal or restarts, but in rugby, time-wasting is subjective.
"Everyone left the game the other night, 54,000 people, frustrated, upset and talking about the referee," said Kirwan. "Is that how we want international rugby?
"We need to have a time clock on the scrum... and it's like the NBA, take it out of the referee's decision. You have 30 seconds to set the scrum and play, you have 40 seconds for a lineout and any infringement is a free-kick... for a penalty, you have 15 seconds to kick it out and let's speed our game up.
"It's not the referee's fault and it's not Foley's fault.
"I'd do it myself - I'd waste as much time as I could in the last five minutes, if I was ahead by three points. I'd be faking a hamstring [injury], because I'm a professional sportsman that wants to win."
Statistics from the test suggest the first half lasted a total of 51 minutes with only 12 minutes of actual play - the rest was stoppages.
But former All Black Jeff Wilson warns speeding the game up would affect the physical requirements of players, watering down the power element.
The All Blacks victory sees the Bledisloe Cup secure at NZ Rugby headquarters for another year, extending a 20-year reign over the Wallabies, but stokes the fire under this week's return match at Auckland's Eden Park, where the home team haven't lost since 1994.
Meanwhile, Rugby Australia awaits a reply from World Rugby to its official complaint over Raynal's performance and the SANZAAR judicial ruling on loose forward Darcy Swain's attack on the legs of All Blacks midfielder Quinn Tupaea, which was probably ended his season.
Join us at 7pm Saturday for live updates of the second All Blacks v Australia Bledisloe Cup test
