Dick Podmore
Chairman, Laws Subcommittee, USARRA

Amendments to the Laws of the Game
At the April meeting of the Council of the IRB the Board approved amendments to the Laws of the Game for 2001.  The amendments are issued in the form of specific changes that need to be made to the text of the existing Laws.  Obviously this is a very necessary form, so that Lawbooks around the world can be properly modified.  However, in such a form the changes aren’t always easy to understand without careful cross-reference between the amendments and old Laws.  The specific amendments are the definitive version.  For those of you that would like to see them they are (or will be) available on the USA Rugby website at www.usarugby.org.  However, the following is a summary description of most of the amendments and the reasons for them in a more “user friendly” format.

The maul
The most important amendments concern the maul.

As a first approximation under current law, if a maul remains stationary (or stops moving forward), then the maul ends unsuccessfully.  If the ball in the stationary maul is moving and the referee can see it, then the referee allows a reasonable time for it to emerge.  If it doesn’t emerge, then the referee orders a scrum, and the team not in possession when the maul began throws in the ball.  These provisions are known broadly as the “use it or lose it”.

Under the amendments “use it or lose it” does not come into effect until the maul has been stationary for 5 seconds.  Thus there is 5-second window during which a maul that had been stationary from the beginning can move for the first time, or a maul that stopped moving forward can move forward (i.e. in the same direction) for a second time.  The 5-second window can be used only once at any one maul.  If a maul becomes stationary a second time, then “use it or lose it” comes into effect immediately.

The amendment is an attempt to un-clutter the midfield, and provide more space for attack.  Under current Law an effective defensive tactic at the maul is to commit as few players to the maul as necessary to prevent its immediate progress, and to spread the remaining players in other defensive roles across the field.  The result can be a defensive wall and a cluttered midfield that is difficult for the attack to penetrate.  Under the amendments it is thought that giving a team another 5 seconds to move the maul forward will encourage more opposing players to commit to the maul to prevent that move, thus opening space for attack elsewhere.

Obviously the maul amendments are very new, and we have not had time to think through all of the possible questions, interpretations and ramifications.  A group of USA Rugby coaches and referees will be reviewing them over the next month or so.

Experimental Law Variations
The next most important amendments aren’t in fact changes.  Last year some Experimental Law Variations were introduced that were related to Foul Play, the Tackle, Touch and Line-0ut, and the Scrum.  After a year of seeing them in action there has been favorable reaction to most of them throughout the world.  Thus, this year all but one of the variations have been elevated, essentially word-for-word, to full Law status.  There are no changes in the meaning or intent of any of them.

The Experimental Law Variations that have become a full part of the Laws are:

Foul Play:  Temporary suspension or “sin binning” for offenses as voluntary (intentional) offending , repeated infringements by a player (or a team) and acts contrary to good sportsmanship.

Tackle: Tackled player must release the ball to opponents on their feet.  Players that approach the tackle, or its immediate aftermath, must come from “their side of the tackle”.  Players who first play the ball after a tackle must immediately do something with the ball (other than going to ground with it) or move away. 

Touch and Line-out: Pre-gripping is allowed, but not below the waist.  Supporting is allowed, but not below the shorts from behind or below the thighs from in front.  Peeling players given more, but not complete, freedom of movement close to the line-out. 

Scrum: Binding of props. ‘Use it or lose it’ for stationary at scrums.

The only Experimental Law Variation that was not made part of full Law was the much maligned “turnover” variation related to wheeled scrums.  The IRB had concerns with the variation at the recreational level.  However, it was retained as an Experimental Law Variation and is therefore still in effect, even though it is not a full part of Law.

Other Amendments
There are several other amendments, most but not all of which are clarifications of existing Law.
These are:

Definition are added for:
“Pre-gripping” at the line-out.  Should be at or above the waist, consistent with the Experimental Law Variation introduced in 2000.
“Near.”  Defined as “within one meter” when used in context of the tackle and players and ball on the ground.  Replaces the phrase “close proximity” in those contexts.
“Referee.”  Used as a pointer to Law 6.
“Temporary suspended.”  Used as a pointer to the “sin bin” provisions of Law 10.

The Ground:  The 5-meter broken line and 15-meter dash lines that are parallel to the touch lines, and define the limits of a line-out, are to be ended 5 meters from the goal line.  As a line-out cannot be taken within 5 meters of a goal line it is unnecessary to extend the lines to the goal lines, and removing that portion of them reduces the visual clutter in that important area of the field-of-play.

Number of Players:  One amendment to Law 3 is clarification of the procedure to be used if a front row player is sent off or temporarily suspended and the team does not have a suitably trained replacement on the field-of-play.  The captain may choose one of the team’s players who leaves the field-of -play and is replaced by a suitably trained front row player from the team’s replacements.  The current wording of the Law could be interpreted such that the switch must be made at the time that the infringing player is sent of or suspended (or after another player has been tried in the front row).  The amendment clarifies that the switch does not have to be made until the next scrum (or after another player has been tried in the front row).    Another amendment clarifies that, once the temporary suspension ends, the infringing front row player returns, the replacement front row player leaves, and the player chosen to leave returns to the field-of-play.

Player’s Clothing:  The amendment prohibits players from wearing communication devices.

Time:  The law related to time keeping is amended to include the possibility of an official time- keeper.  There is also amendment as a clarification of existing Law that the first and second halves cannot end on a mark, free kick or penalty kick.

Match Officials:  The reference to yellow and red cards is deleted from Law 6, as the provisions about cards are adequately covered in Law 10.

Method of Scoring:  The amendment clarifies that the time within which a kick at goal must be taken begins when the kicking tee or sand arrives or the kicker makes a mark on the ground.  It also clarifies that the time within which the kick must be taken includes any time taken to reset a ball that has fallen over.

Foul Play:  There is a rephrasing of an existing obstruction provision to clarify that, to be guilty of an obstruction infringement, a player in front of the team-mate must cause some disadvantage to the opposing team.   In addition to the “sin bin” provision covered earlier there is an amendment that grants discretion on the use of yellow and red cards to local unions for all but international matches.  Another amendment awards the penalty kick for voluntarily knocking or throwing the ball out of the playing area at the 15-meter line.

Kick-offs and Restart Kicks:  If a ball is kicked directly into touch from a 22 drop-out and the opposing team accept the kick, the subsequent line-out is at the 22-meter line, rather than where the ball went into touch.

Tackle:  The word “voluntarily” was added to the prohibitions on a tackled player placing or pushing the ball into touch, clarifying that, unless voluntary, the acts of push or placing are not infringements.

Maul: An amendment clarifies that a maul ends successfully when the ball is on the ground.

Touch & Line-out: An amendment clarifies that a line-out ends when a player carrying the ball moves within 5 meters of the touch line.

Scrum: As part of the attempt to assure a fair contest for the ball the amendments specify that, in addition to existing requirements, the scrum-half stands sufficiently far away from the scrum that the scrum-half’s head does not touch it; that the ball is held with its major axis parallel to the ground; and that the ball is thrown in from outside the tunnel.  Also the penalty for repeatedly kicking the ball out of the tunnel in the direction from which it was thrown is amended to a penalty kick, rather than a free kick.  This makes the penalty consistent with that for other repeated infringements.

Penalty and Free Kicks:  Consistent with the provisions for conversion kicks, the amendment clarifies that the time within which a penalty or free kick at goal must be taken begins when the kicking tee or sand arrives or the kicker makes a mark on the ground.  It also clarifies that the time within which the kick must be taken includes any time taken to reset a ball that has fallen over.

All of the amendments will be in effect for the fall season.