Refereeing Talking Point After Red Card In Highlanders' Loss To Sharks

Refereeing is the big talking point after the Highlanders' 15-14 Super Rugby loss to the Sharks in Dunedin.

Second five Jason Emery was red carded in the 12th minute of the match after an ugly mid-air collision with Sharks fullback Willie le Roux.

Two Sharks players were shown yellow cards in the match.

Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph said being down one man had an impact.

"With Jason's red card, very hard for us to win a game of rugby for 65-odd minutes of the game. It paid its toll."

Joseph said it was not deliberate on Emery's part, but it was dangerous.

"What I was surprised about was that the advice from the TMO to the referee was that it wasn't deliberate. The pondered over it for two or three times then made that decision."

The SANZAAR judiciary will investigate the matter.

Co-captain Shane Christie says they still should've come away with the win, but poor handling cost them.

"That's probably how we missed the opportunity to win the game really, just didn't quite nail our roles and, like you say, handling errors - there's no excuse."

Meanwhile, the Melbourne Rebels have fought back from a 14-10 halftime deficit to post a 36-14 win over the Cheetahs in Melbourne.

It gives them a chance to stay ahead of the Brumbies in the Australian conference, who host the Crusaders tomorrow.

Radio Sport