Yesterday World Rugby announced a number of new law changes which will be applied this season from the 1st July. The idea behind them is not to nullify South Africa's chances of winning a 3rd World Cup which some would like you to believe, but more about making the game safer.
Don't be fooled these are not fans and are more likely parents and coaches from school levels that have put these suggestions forward. No real fan would suggest any of these law changes because the majority only know the real basics and this would be way too advanced for their limited knowledge.
The first law change is that no scrum ca be awarded from a free kick which has only ever happened once when South Africa called a scrum from the mark. The reason behind this was to tire the opposition forwards for later in the game when the impact players arrived known as the "bomb squad".
The reason it has only been used only once s that most teams see this as an opportunity to clear their lines as they are not as confident on their scrum as the Springboks.
Less scrums may not seem great for the game but we have to look at the grass roots level and school kids scrumming less is only a good thing which will have parents sighing in relief. The strain on the neck and upper body is very real and school kids do not have the physique of a professional athlete whose body has been toned to cope with such pressures.
The offside rule has also been tweaked with the idea that it opens up more
space for attacking play. In the past a player would receive a kicked ball and if he moved 5 meters the players were all offside whether they had retreated or not. Now they have to retreat ad continue retreating until placed on side by the kicker. Anton DuPont created this problem and this is seen as negating this tactic.
The last one I question and that is if a player is red carded and sent off then he can be replaced by another player after 20 minutes. Therefore this is like a 20 minute penalty where one team plays with one less player.
Red cards are issued for serious foul play and used to keep player welfare in check. Knowing you can now be replaced and is not a permanent punishment makes the sending off less severe. I disagree with this law change because it is not making the game safer and is telling players you can be sent off, but it is not so bad. For me this sends the wrong message and this law is still in a test phase so hopefully this is not going to be adopted.
The last notable law change is the banning of the Crocodile roll where a player is moved out the way by rolling his body by holding the mid drift. Again this is similar to the neck role, but less dangerous and cannot fathom why it is now banned. If you have taken the time to grab hold of someone and turn them out the way you are using more care than if you would have removed him by other means of force. The only possible explanation again is this is to look after school kids whilst they are playing with bodies that are not yet fully developed.