All Blacks coach Steve Hansen would love to change how rugby is officiated – starting from scratch.

Hansen declared the sport is too complex and believes international refereeing is overly bureaucratic in a wide-ranging critique ahead of Saturday’s Test against South Africa.

“If I was allowed to do one thing in the game, I’d rip the rule book up,” he said.

“I’d put in the rules that are necessary.”

Hansen was responding to widespread criticism of the officiating following four of the six Rugby Championship Tests played this year.

Key decisions have swung matches, most notably last weekend in Perth when Australia clinched a late win over the Springboks.

Hansen says officials are encumbered by the sheer number of laws and says many of the clauses “don’t even sound like English”.

He is also concerned that referees have too many bosses.

For example, a top Kiwi official has to answer to a New Zealand manager (Rod Hill), a Sanzar equivalent (Lyndon Bray) and to the IRB.

“If they’ve all got different ideas, then you’ve got three different messages coming to you,” Hansen said.

“The problem is, a lot of the laws are about what you see and interpret.”

Hansen wants the Test referee structure amended so a referee and the same two touch judges travel together to control matches.

He believes touch judge is a specialist role and should be allowed to garner a relationship under pressure with the same referee.

“Give a ref two touch judges for the year and say: `That’s your team’ and we’ll judge you as a team, not just as you in the middle.

“That way they’d become better and more consistent.”

Saturday’s Test will be controlled by Jerome Garces, a third different Frenchman in a row for the All Blacks.

Hansen says he has no concern about the merits of northern hemisphere referees compared to their southern counterparts.

He believes it is important that Test referees continue to come from neutral countries.