​Boo! Rubbish! Hiss! The pantomime villain that is Wasps have got away with it again.

The team that would rather sit on the bus munching pizza than play Sale when it is a bit wet and muddy, escaped punishment for their actions at a Premier Rugby hearing on Monday.

Sale, along with referee David Rose, said the pitch was fine, despite a bit of mud and standing water on one side of the Edgeley Road ground a couple of weeks ago.

Wasps claimed the pitch was “dangerous”, voiced concerns about player safety and promptly sped off back to London leaving 7,000 punters fuming.

Calls for Wasps to be punished over their role in ‘Mudgate’ were loud and vociferous – especially from the Sale camp. After all, this was the third consecutive year they have been involved in a late postponement.

But Monday’s disciplinary ruling answered charges that Wasps had ‘breached Guinness Premiership regulations’ by saying “charges had not been proven and, accordingly, the charges have been dismissed by the panel”.

Wasps cooed with satisfaction. “We are delighted at the outcome,” said a club statement.

Sale groaned and the supposed injustice of it all.

“This decision is incredibly disappointing,” said Sale CEO James Jennings.

Much of the Guinness Premiership agreed. But the decision was spot on.

For me, the issue here were the ridiculous rules in place that allow a team to decide whether or not a match goes ahead, irrespective of what the referee says.

Under the current league laws, a side can choose not to play a game if it has safety concerns, whatever the ref thinks. This opens up a can of worms.

Any side can surely play the same card if the weather dictates it.

And, let’s face it, there are few times during the months of November to March when pitches in England are not damp, wet and muddy.

To end all of this kerfuffle which has done even more damage to an already tarnished game’s reputation, rules must be changed. And pronto.

Give the referee the ultimate right to make the decision as to whether or not the game goes ahead.

He is the man in the middle. He is the best judge of whether a pitch is playable or not. Give him the power to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ – and give it to him now.