SUPER CUP TO TRIAL EXPERIMENTAL LAW VARIATIONS


Scottish Rugby has reached agreement with the International Rugby Board to trial a number of Experimental Law Variations in the new Premier 1 Club Super Cup in early 2007.

This follows the initial trial by the IRB of a number of ELVs at Stellenbosch University in South Africa earlier this year.

Law Project Group chairman and IRB representative Bill Nolan said: “Throughout the year an IRB Law Project Group has used the rugby laboratory at Stellenbosch University in South Africa to undertake a detailed review on the laws of the game and in particular the areas of the tackle and post tackle that are proving to be the most difficult to interpret in a practical manner at present.

“Following the trial a review of the ELVs was undertaken and the next stage in their development is to test them in a higher level of competition.

“The IRB is delighted that Scottish Rugby has agreed to trial all the ELVs in its new 21 -match Premier 1 Club Super Cup in January, February and March 2007. This represents the next stage in their evolution but it must be stressed that it’s still very early days in the assessment process.

“We have made changes to the ELVs based on what we saw during the trial at Stellenbosch as we continue in our objective to see if we can simplify the laws and remove subjectivity from referee decisions without affecting the intrinsic values and character of the game, and ensuring rugby stays as a game for all shapes and sizes,” added Nolan.

The IRB Laws Project Group includes former World Cup winning Wallaby coach Rod Macqueen, former Springbok coach Ian McIntosh, former Scotland coach Richie Dixon, former French player, coach and current IRB Regional Development Manager Pierre Villepreux, IRB Referee Manager Paddy O'Brien and IRB Development Manager Bruce Cook

“The IRB laws project group is very appreciative of the positive attitude Scottish Rugby, the Premier 1 Clubs and the referees have taken in helping this important project” said Richie Dixon. He added: “It is vital we continue to trial these ELVs in different settings and climatic conditions. I believe the Premier 1 clubs here in Scotland have provided us with a suitable vehicle to gather further demonstrable evidence in our quest to trial the ELVs extensively”.

Jock Millican, Secretary of the Premier 1 Forum, said: “The Premier 1 clubs are pleased to have the opportunity to trial the experimental laws and have an input to the formation of any potential law changes. The Super Cup is an ideal format for this and we believe the experimental law changes will lead to a more exciting game for players and spectators.”

The IRB’s Bruce Cook added: “The Scottish Premier 1 Clubs have all held initial workshops with members of the laws project group to understand the objectives behind the experiment and to be educated in the application of the ELVs.

“The meetings, led by Richie Dixon, have been very productive and the clubs have begun to explore ways to implement the experimental laws that will be introduced in the Super Cup.

“Very recently, players, coaches and referees attended a further meeting with Richie Dixon, Ian McIntosh and myself in order to further progress the project. It gave everyone involved the opportunity to further clarify the interpretation and application of the experimental law variations.

“We now have an arrangement with Scottish Rugby as to how these matches will be managed and we look forward to the kick-off of the Super Cup and further analysis of the ELVs.”

A full media presentation involving Scottish Rugby, IRB and Premier 1 clubs on the Experimental Law Variations will take place at Murrayfield on Tuesday 19 December. Exact time to be confirmed.

The principal areas covered by the variations are lineout, tackle, maul and scrum.

The Premier One Super Cup, split into two pools, begins on Saturday 6 January with the final on Saturday 31 March.

This article was originally posted on 1-Dec-2006, 15:02 by Hugh Barrow.
Last updated by Hugh Barrow on 1-Dec-2006, 15:03.