Steve:

That's one of the best concise descriptions I've ever seen, and I've reffed rugby for 17 years after a fifteen year playing career. I presume you're British, and would suggest that you'll see a better match at your local second division club than you will at a world cup, simply because lower level refs are required to actually enforce the laws of the game. It seems that once a ref makes the highest grade, he no longer cares to enforce anything, resulting in a mess like the one you saw.