The Art of Refereeing - Part Three - The Global Law Trials

WW's third 'Art' episode, and very useful, I reckon... Global law trials are introduced to try to speed the game up, make it safer, but generally to make it more of a spectacle for the.. er.. spectators.   The trials for this new season will see coaches and players adapting the way they play, so why are they changing. Here’s a run through of what’s new, and what it could mean.

50:22

The trial

If Coventry kick the ball from inside our own half, and it bounces before going into touch inside the opposition’s 22, Coventry will throw into the resultant lineout. Like kicking from the 22, the ball cannot be passed or carried back into the defensive half for the 50:22 to be played.

The trial goes on to add that “the phase must originate inside the defensive half” which means that it all has to start inside our own half of the field.

What’s the primary intention?

This trial has been introduced to encourage the defensive team to put more players in the backfield, thereby creating more attacking space and reducing defensive line speed. In practice, the wingers will play deeper in defence until the opposition cross the halfway line in attack.

Goal line drop-out

The trial

If the ball is held up in in-goal, if there’s a knock-on from a Coventry player in the in-goal area (that’s the bit between the goal line and the dead ball line), or an attacking kick is made dead by the defenders in their own in-goal, then play restarts with a goal line drop-out anywhere along the goal line.

What’s the primary intention?

To encourage variety in attacking play close to the goal line and to increase ball in play time by replacing a scrum with a kick that must be taken without delay. An opportunity for counter attack is also created.  What could possibly go wrong?

Flying wedge

To explain – a flying wedge is defined as three players who are already bound (with the ball carrier at the front, obviously) before there is any contact with an opposition player. Used to be used a lot at tap and go penalties from close range, but it was deemed dangerous to any player attempting to tackle three players at a time.

The trial

To penalise the three person pre-bound mini-scrum by redefining the flying wedge.

What’s the primary intention?

To reduce number of events where the ball carrier and multiple support players are in contact (latched / bound) prior to contact, and to protect the tackler who can be faced with the combined force of three opposing players.

One-player pre-latched

Nothing to see here really, this is law catching up with practice mostly. It wasn’t being refereed consistently even though it has been common practice for some years, so this makes it legal by defining it.

The trial

To recognise the potential for One-player pre-latching prior to contact, but this player must observe all of the requirements for a first arriving player, particularly the need to stay on their feet.

What’s the primary intention?

To be more consistent in the management of the one-person pre-latched player. i.e. referees weren’t treating this the same way as each other, so it’s either legal or it’s not. This makes it legal.

Cleanout and the safety of the jackler

What’s a “jackler”? He’s the defending player who gets to the tackled (and released) ball carrier first and can try to pick the ball over to effect a turn over by winning the ball. Attacking support players need to get him / them out of the way so that we can retain possession and that has been seen to involve some brutal and dangerous tactics, so for me, this is robably the most needed of trials.

It has been introduced to give some protection to the jackler once a tackle has been made. We’ve been seeing neck rolls / crocodile rolls and support players charging in with one shoulder to shift the jackler, so this is another attempt to clean that area up and make it safer.

What’s a clean out?? It’s just a term we’ve used in the game for a few years to describe the action of clearing the defenders out of the way so that we can re-cycle the ball. We “clean” them out of the way, hence cleanout.

The trial

To introduce a sanction for clean outs which target or drop weight onto the lower limbs.

Primary intention

To reduce injury risk to the player being cleaned out.