Just watching rugby on TV. The ref stated that a tackler cannot lift the opposing player. The lift was straight up, no more than 18 inches, and deliberate.
The law is whatever the ref on the pitch tells you it is. Whether it is or is not will not help you during the game, so you go along with what the ref says.
(ETA - and yes, on the field the ref is absolute and should be obeyed - that's not to say that off-field/post-game criticism from non-participants is verboten )
