New laws for Super Rugby season
Teams will now get a try-scoring bonus point if they score three tries more than their opponent.
New laws will be trialed in the new expanded Super Rugby competition which kicks off on Friday, 26 February.
These laws are to be implemented by Sanzaar (the new rugby body consisting of South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina) but it’s by no means final or an approved product yet.
The proposals were discussed at a recent meeting of Sanzaar where representatives of the 18 teams in Super Rugby were in attendance, with 10 members of SA present, according to a report by the SA Referees Association on the South African Rugby Union’s (Saru) official website.
The main issue regarding the law changes seems to be that of the bonus point issue. In the past, teams received a bonus point for scoring four tries or more. In an effort to make the matches more entertaining, especially in the final quarter, teams will only now get a try-scoring bonus point if they score three tries more than their opponent.
In another change to the laws, the Television Match Official’s (TMO) powers have been reduced, with his powers restricted to the event of a try being scored in the goal-scoring area and to rule in the event of possible foul play.
In the recent past the TMO was called upon to assist the referee in the event of a knock-on or forward pass going a few phases back but that will no longer be the case. The referee alone will be able to pass judgement on a possible forward pass or knock-on, but the TMO may assist if there’s doubt whether a player put his foot in touch before scoring a try.
Another proposal is that the referee’s microphone will now be heard over the loudspeakers in the stadium to allow spectators to understand his calls a bit better.
