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As I posted in Christy's Offside or Play On thread, there is an experimental law that will be trailed in the Mitre 10 Cup (formerly ITM Cup) this year.
They are introducing the concept of a phase of play known as a "breakdown". There will no longer be a requirement for two players (one from each team) over the ball to form a ruck and therefore an offside line. As soon as one player from either team arrives at the tackle, or if the tackler stands up and moves to his own side of the tackle, a Breakdown is formed and an offside line appears. It is an attempt to trial a form of "Offside at the Tackle" law similar to the ELV in 2008, but to delay the appearance of the offside line slightly to get around the problems experienced with that earlier ELV.
Another of the trial Breakdown Laws is that the jackler/tackler will have to release the ball if an opponent arrives and grasps him, so specialist fetchers like David Pocock, Liam Gill and Sam Cane will be largely shut out of the game.
These Laws are already being trialled in some club rugby competitions in NZ, and the consensus so far is that will be an unmitigated disaster at upper levels. Club coaches were warned to expect up to 30 penalties each game during the first couple of weeks under the trial Laws. Instead, the penalty count remained normal due to teams deciding not to contest the breakdown at all. They reported the games ended up looking like Rugby League but with a "place the ball" instead of "play the ball".
I have watched two games under the new Laws and I have to agree with those Coaches' assessments. Both games ended up with a procession of possession as it was clear that neither side were willing to risk a PK to turn over the ball. Instead, the defence lined the trenches, and the attack either tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to batter their way through the defence or kicked to the sideline for territorial gain. The only turnovers came from the occasional held up maul, dropped/forward passes and knock-ons. The latter will not happen as much at upper levels where the skills are much better.
My impression was that it looked like a cross between Rugby League with unlimited tackles and 1960's 10 man rugby. Either way, I fear that the New Zealand NPC is going to be a borefest this year.
They are introducing the concept of a phase of play known as a "breakdown". There will no longer be a requirement for two players (one from each team) over the ball to form a ruck and therefore an offside line. As soon as one player from either team arrives at the tackle, or if the tackler stands up and moves to his own side of the tackle, a Breakdown is formed and an offside line appears. It is an attempt to trial a form of "Offside at the Tackle" law similar to the ELV in 2008, but to delay the appearance of the offside line slightly to get around the problems experienced with that earlier ELV.
Another of the trial Breakdown Laws is that the jackler/tackler will have to release the ball if an opponent arrives and grasps him, so specialist fetchers like David Pocock, Liam Gill and Sam Cane will be largely shut out of the game.
These Laws are already being trialled in some club rugby competitions in NZ, and the consensus so far is that will be an unmitigated disaster at upper levels. Club coaches were warned to expect up to 30 penalties each game during the first couple of weeks under the trial Laws. Instead, the penalty count remained normal due to teams deciding not to contest the breakdown at all. They reported the games ended up looking like Rugby League but with a "place the ball" instead of "play the ball".
I have watched two games under the new Laws and I have to agree with those Coaches' assessments. Both games ended up with a procession of possession as it was clear that neither side were willing to risk a PK to turn over the ball. Instead, the defence lined the trenches, and the attack either tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to batter their way through the defence or kicked to the sideline for territorial gain. The only turnovers came from the occasional held up maul, dropped/forward passes and knock-ons. The latter will not happen as much at upper levels where the skills are much better.
My impression was that it looked like a cross between Rugby League with unlimited tackles and 1960's 10 man rugby. Either way, I fear that the New Zealand NPC is going to be a borefest this year.
