The new rule that’s changing rugby

Just one week into the Premiership season, and rugby’s new laws already appear to have transformed the sport, said Owen Slot in The Times. The opening weekend saw the introduction of rules designed to “encourage attacking play”. But no one could have anticipated such an immediate impact: in “a feast of scoring”, there were 50 tries across the league’s six matches – smashing the previous record for an opening weekend, of 36 tries. In their 55-24 win over Northampton, Saracens scored nine tries; there were 12 in Wasps’ 50-35 win over Sale. The “try spree” hasn’t just been caused by the new rules, though: it’s also proof of English teams’ “growing attacking intent”.

The new laws address two areas of the game, said Brian Moore in The Daily Telegraph: the scrum and the ruck. Having come into effect in the northern hemisphere last month, the rules will be adopted in the south from January. The tackle law, in particular – tacklers can now only play the ball from their own side of the ruck, rather than the opposition side – is making a real difference. That ensures momentum is with the attacking team, and makes sides “work harder” in defence to slow down the ball. Bath’s 27-23 win at Leicester showed how this law has “changed outlooks”, said Mick Cleary in the same paper: the game exhibited the “breathless” rugby more often associated with southern hemisphere sides. Finally, the days of “safety-first” Premiership rugby are over.