The November Take a look at matches will embrace the introduction of a trial of 20-minute purple playing cards for the primary time within the Northern Hemisphere.
The information was confirmed Friday with referees having an choice to difficulty two forms of purple playing cards.
If a participant is responsible of “deliberate and harmful” foul play, they’ll nonetheless be despatched off for the entire match. However technical offences might be penalised with a 20-minute purple card. If that is awarded, the participant will depart the pitch for your complete match, however might be changed by a substitute after 20 minutes is up, which means the staff can be again as much as 15 gamers for the remainder of the sport.
The 20-minute purple card can be in play for the 21 matches of the Autumn Nations Collection, which begins on Nov. 2 with England dealing with New Zealand at Twickenham.
It is a controversial transfer, and a distinct variation of 20-minute purple playing cards has already drawn robust opposition from French rugby the place the French Rugby Federation argued it might be an “unacceptable step backwards on the measures put in place over the previous couple of years to cut back head impacts.”
La Rochelle head coach Ronan O’Gara mentioned the introduction of 20-minute purple playing cards would see the game “reentering harmful territory” and referred to as the measures “nonsense.”
However this newest mannequin is tweaked, which means the referee can use a 20-minute penalty for technical offences, like unintentional head contact. “Everybody in rugby understands that there’s a enormous alternative to seize the eye of a far broader viewers, alongside catering for its present and passionate fanbase,” Six Nations chief of rugby Julie Paterson mentioned.
“The legislation trials are only one step in direction of exploring this chance, and the trials working all through the Autumn Nations Collection will hopefully improve the expertise for followers, while serving to clarify a number of the choices taken ‘dwell’ and to embrace but in addition clarify the nuances which might be a part of what make rugby so distinctive and particular.
“No trial or subsequent change is taken into account with out utter confidence that participant security and welfare is entrance and centre although. At the beginning, we have to take care of the gamers and their pursuits, and the trials we have now opted to make use of this November ship on this dedication.”
Different trials in play through the finish of 12 months internationals embrace scrum and lineout countdown clocks and referees explaining choices at factors through the match through the stadium loudspeaker.
