There was confusion at the end of the match between Otago and Tasman at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday night.
Referee Mike Fraser blew fulltime when a scrum was about to be formed and Otago had the feed, much to the disgust of many in the crowd.
The clock appeared to be just short of 80 minutes and the hooter then blew about 15 seconds after Fraser blew his whistle.
But match officials said afterwards everything had worked properly except for the hooter.
For whatever reason the hooter did not sound when the button was pushed but time had elapsed and the 80 minutes was up when Fraser blew his whistle for fulltime.
Otago coach Cory Brown was left scratching his head after the game but said it was out of the team’s control.
There appeared to be a few seconds left and Otago could have had one last chance.
Referee Fraser and Otago will never exchange Christmas cards.
In the end, though, he ruled that time was up and he is the one that matters.