Fewer high-tackle offences since punishment increased

World Rugby has responded to suggestions from the Rugby Football Union’s latest injury report to lower the legal height of the tackle area by pointing to a drop in yellow cards for high-tackle offences in the Aviva Premiership since new directives were introduced last year.

The game’s governing body introduced increased sanctions in January 2017 as “the most immediate and effective way to impact on tackle height and tackler body position”, after research concluded that 76 per cent of head-injury assessments incidents occurred after high tackles.

“Penalty sanctions for high tackles were increased by 64 per cent worldwide in 2017 compared to 2016,” World Rugby noted in yesterday’s statement, adding that increasing the number of yellow cards changed behaviour.

The statement continued: “Hightackle yellow cards increased by an average of 41 per cent globally after the directive, but with noted variation between tournaments, including a 36 per cent decrease in yellow cards issued for high tackles in the Aviva Premiership.”

The RFU medical services director, Simon Kemp, suggested in the report that World Rugby should consider lowering the legal height of the tackle to below the line of the shoulders.

“As it is currently configured, the margin for error is very small,” Kemp added.