Dave Rennie backs proposed law changes, pushes for modified red-card rules

Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 3:31 AM
Nathan Williamson
by Nathan Williamson
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Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has thrown his support behind proposed rule changes which would see the 50-22 and goal-line drop out laws trialled at the international level.

These laws have been trialled across Super Rugby AU and Trans-Tasman, with World Rugby set to extend it for the next 12 months starting in August.

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This puts the Wallabies in a potentially awkward position, essentially forcing them to play two separate laws for the French and Bledisloe series.

However, Rennie told reporters on Thursday the measures had his full support as they look to promote attacking Rugby.

“I think the 50-22, it’s a good rule but mainly because it’s not so much just kicking into the corner and getting an advantage from that. It means teams have got to defend it and you’ve got more back-field cover then maybe there’s more space to attack in, so I like that,” he said. “I think that’s been a good addition to our comp.

“The goal line dropout, historically you could have had multiple scrums and a lot of the game is chewed up from that.

“The advantage of kicking from there as opposed to a 22, you generally drop out to halfway and the team who catches it generally ends up attacking and we get on with the game, rather than maybe kicking to the opposition 22 and then the ball goes up in the air and you get a bit of volleyball happening.

“I see real positives surrounding those laws.”

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Whilst these laws have been approved, he's questioned why this hasn't extended into including the 20 minute red card.

With World Rugby cracking down on high-contact, Rennie admitted he was 'disappointed' that it was not adopted.

“We’d like to see the red card remain at 20 minutes. As we’ve seen, there has been decisions that have been made, they can have a massive impact on the game and maybe post game are viewed as not as serious,” Rennie said.

“At least with 20 minutes you can even the numbers up again, so disappointed that’s not going to be trialled from a World Rugby perspective.”

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When asked about why it wasn't included, Rennie suggested the Northern Hemisphere blocked its implementation.

"It had enormous support in the southern hemisphere, but not the northern. I'm not sure,I don't understand it," he said.

“As we know, there’s a lot of emphasis around head contact so there’s going to be a lot of cards.

“Individuals who get it wrong are going to be punished.”

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