LIAM NAPIER
Last updated 15:12, August 9 2016
Provincial rugby kicks off next week but not quite as we know it. This year there's a twist.
From the moment rugby moved away from rucking the breakdown has gradually become a convoluted mess.
The mad scramble to steal and protect possession often leaves fans, players, coaches and, yes even referees, at odds with each other.
Taranaki coach Colin Cooper is confident the new trial laws will make provincial rugby better.
It's a key area of the game that makes rugby, well, rugby. But it also continues to cause major frustrations.
Now, in an effort to mitigate confusion, improve the spectacle and reduce injuries, this year's national provincial championship will feature some notable rule changes.
Tasman coach Leon MacDonald believes the new laws will improve the game.
One player from each team engaged over the ball constitutes a ruck in all other rugby.
But
under these trial laws, one arriving player over the ball means a
breakdown is formed. From that moment no hands are allowed, players must
stay on their feet and the tackler is required to roll away.
The tackler also cannot spring to his feet and immediately attack the ball; instead they must come back round to their side of the breakdown and enter from the mid-point.
"We're used to seeing your traditional fetcher - a Richie McCaw type player - make a tackle get straight on his feet and crack onto the ball. That's no longer allowed in that sense," referee Angus Mabey explains.
"In some ways it's slowed it down to speed it up. Players are having to make more of a decision about what to do when they get into that contact area instead of just flying in there. As a result the ball is available much quicker.
"From the games we've done in club rugby and preseason we think it's going to take time but we are seeing that shift. There's greater height at the breakdown; players are working harder to stay on their feet and get out of the collision area."
The laws have been trialled in Northland, Bay of Plenty, North Harbour, Taranaki and Tasman club rugby, giving those provincial coaches an early leg up.
"People will notice a massive change," Tasman coach Leon MacDonald said.
"Super Rugby there's a lot of people on the ground where this sees players have a lot higher body positions. Generally, the ball seems to be a lot quicker. It will take a bit of adjusting but professional players should be able to adapt."
Taranaki coach Colin Cooper said results in his region showed 35 per cent increase in tries and the ball play more.
"The game will be quicker. There's no doubt about that," Cooper said. "The good coaches and players will adapt very quickly. I think it will be clearer for the fans and referees."
Early indications suggest the attacking team holds the ball for much longer and the best way to steal possession is through counter rucking. This generally sees teams commit more numbers to the breakdown, leaving space elsewhere.
"It's a mindset shift," Canterbury coach Scott Robertson said. "You've got to do a lot of technical stuff and work in the gym. All our numbers show that running miles are higher, collisions are less because you're not cleaning out at the ruck as much and you're on your feet more.
"The first few weeks everyone is going to be looking at everyone else closely at what structures they're using and how they're going to get benefits out of it."
While the early mood appears positive,
openside flankers once again see the goal posts shifted and their job
descriptions redefined.
"It's going to be really interesting in the first couple of weeks for the public," Hawke's Bay coach Craig Philpott noted. "I think it's going to take them a couple of weeks to be puzzled and wonder what's going on. Long term and once the Super Rugby players coming back down get an understanding of the rules, it should make for a better, safer game."
New Zealand is the only country to
trial the laws at first-class level and will pass on feedback World
Rugby once the season is complete.
