[wwcfoa43]

Though the replay showed that the talking heads were incorrect about whether it was a TD, I agree with them that the umpire should be able to rule on TDs.

In Canadian four, five and seven man mechanics, with the ball inside the two yard line, the umpire positions himself close to the line of scrimmage and then steps forward on the line surge to be able to rule whether the ball crosses the line or not. In six man, we place two officials in this position. (Mind you, our fields are 65 yards wide, placing the outside wing man farther away.)

I believe that putting the umpire in a position to rule on a TD is a significant advantage in mechanics.

Since I have just disagreed with the mechanics of 90% of the officials in North America, I certainly do not expect much support from south of the border!