TMO: Jurisdiction to be extended
Television match officials will be given wider powers under a series of rule changes that will be implemented later this year.
The amendments, which were announced on Tuesday by the International Rugby Board, will also set a 90-second limit for conversion attempts and restrict the amount of time the ball can be held at the back of a ruck.
The IRB says the changes will be implemented on a trial basis from August in the northern hemisphere and from January in the southern, applying at domestic and international level.
The most far-reaching of the changes concerns the powers given to television match officials, who will now be able to rule on foul play and on incidents which occur inside the field of play in the lead up to a try.
Comments
APV1 says...
@ BokAvenger - Hear! Hear! Whilst we all appreciate the need for sponsorship and advertising, that shouldn't mean that we bow to their every whim.
@ sandal - I've always though that the kicker should get the time they need, but the clock should have stopped. Therefore there'd be no advantage in taking longer. And kicking has now become a science, so they do take quite some time to compose themsleves, get in "the zone", etc...
Posted 10:55 17th May 2012
Chancer says...
We have too many minor rules for our wonderful game already, apart from grounding issues for the TMO, if the three officials cannot get a decision right then I suggest we be tolerant of the outcome. You cannot mitigate for injustice in sport, remember that is what it is.
Posted 09:26 17th May 2012
sandal says...
I almost don't care how long the kicker has to attempt his conversion. So long as this new rule stops try scorers throwing the ball into the crowd.
In 1976, a South African referee called time on an All Black penalty kick after 40 seconds. (Although the ref claimed that was the rule, of course no such rule existed.) Based on that experience, anything less than 90 seconds might be tight if the time for a conversion attempt is measured from the moment the try is awarded.
On the other hand, I remember Dan Carter converting a try from the sideline after the ball fell over and he re-placed it. He acted so quickly he probably didn't have time to worry or to think about it. Short time allowances might just make for more accurate goalkicking.
Posted 07:58 17th May 2012
Sasquatch says...
90 seconds? Ruan Pienaar will need to find another time to think about his weekly shopping list.
Posted 23:50 16th May 2012
BokAvenger says...
The IRB is ruining rugby with pathetic "made for TV" rule changes. Next they'll divide the game into quarters so they can squeeze some extra advertising revenue out of the game. Real rugby should just break away from this psuedo League rubbish they're trying to create.
Posted 19:28 16th May 2012
spliffed says...
Wow lets make a simple game as complex as possible. I am all for TMO's looking at foul play and possible infringements on the lead up to a try.. but how far back will he be going? Yellow cards etc issued after the game dont really penalise the team so basically its just a player history thing.. I am also all for a fast and flowing game but with these rules comming thick and fast mostly aimed at forwards how soon before the scrum becomes obsolete. God forbid we end up getting closer and closer to our League friends. the endless crouch touch pause engage thing is a case in point.. Why? Crouch touch engage. simple.
Posted 17:39 16th May 2012
papachinzo says...
The TMO should have been able to those things anyway, it will turn even the most wayward, indecisive referee, into a pro.
5 seconds is a bit ridiculous really, it should be more like 10-15 seconds.
I think another rule they should look into, is the amount of times a scrum can be reset, a max of 2-3 would suffice. Scrum resets always kill momentum and eat up game time!
Posted 14:53 16th May 2012
Bones7 says...
I don't think it will be 5 seconds, I think that was more of a witty caption based on that rule where you drop food on the floor! I think it would have explicitly stated it in the article if it was actually 5 seconds. 5 seconds would definitely be fine at the top level as few rucks last longer unless they are deliberately playing for time but it probably wouldn't be so easy to enforce at lower levels, but I'd hope referees would take that into account.
Posted 13:15 16th May 2012
physiodan says...
What I would like to see is a single question that the referee can ask to the TMO which either gives benefit of doubt to the the attack or defence. In my eyes, "Is it a try, tes or no?" puts the benefit with the defence as the ball may have been grounded but the TMO cannot see it to award it, where as "Is there any reason why I cannot award the try?" gives the benefit to the attacking team as the TMO cannot disallow unless there is something glaringly obvious. My personal preferance is that the benefit should always go in favour of the attacking team.
Posted 12:56 16th May 2012
pierredelot1 says...
Does this mean they can state their opinion whether asked for or not. If a referee awards a try are we going to get TMOs coming in saying "Hang on a minute this or that happened". In theory is sounds reasonable but in practice it could be horrendous. More consistet refereeing would be better.
Posted 12:37 16th May 2012
jamesliveinhope says...
5 seconds is plenty (count it) the reality is that they only use about 15 seconds a ruck anyway.
Posted 11:46 16th May 2012
keste03 says...
it was 60 seconds from the time the tee entered the pitch - wouldnt change much
Posted 11:42 16th May 2012
pugzly101 says...
DaveJ,
According do a few different commentaries, the 5 second rule will only start once the ref has let the scrum half know that the ball is playable. I don't think the re-organising of the back line will be too much of an issue, well, not for NH teams anyway as most NH teams forwards like to come around the corner straight after a backs move.
Posted 10:33 16th May 2012
jontheref says...
Bash,
Sexton took 1.42 for his conversion.
It is applied very differently by different refs.
Posted 10:12 16th May 2012
BackingLeinster says...
Does anyone know the details on this, how long can the ball be kept at the back of the ruck. Hopefully the ref will just call use it once the ball becomes playable and the scrum half will have to take it on. Also how far back will the TMO's be allowed to ajudicate. Hopefully it will be limited to the last ruck/kick/scrum/line out
Posted 09:29 16th May 2012
jamesliveinhope says...
Always thought it bizarre that they couldn't comment on an obvious forward pass or foul in the run up to a score but where does the boundary exist? How many phases back will he be allowed to go?
Presume the ref will ask to look at specific concerns, I wonder how long it will be before players get in his ear.
I thought kickers had a 60 second time limit already (although apparently not enforced much).
Posted 09:15 16th May 2012
Bash says...
90 second limit is far too much. Isn't it suppose to be 60 seconds?
The best amendment is the 5 second ruck rule. Northern hemisphere teams are going to struggle I reckon...
Posted 09:08 16th May 2012
DaveJ says...
Good rule for the TMO's, suppose 90 seconds is fair for conversions, have never really seen that been exceeded, however, does 5 seconds really give you enough time to reset your back line after a large number of phases? I'm concerned about this one. I suppose teams will need to adapt and it will speed up the game in the long run which is good - I just hope it doesn't turn the game into a penalty fest as teams try to adjust.
Posted 08:59 16th May 2012