General secretary of the Rugby Players Association (RPA) Christian Day has called for a common-sense approach regarding the officiating of community rugby’s new controversial tackle laws.
The newly implemented laws, which will be introduced in the grassroots game from July 1st 2023, state that all tackles must be made at the line of the waist and below following the RFU‘s unanimous vote on the subject.
Day believes a rational approach to refereeing these new laws must be taken and further added that if the introduction of similar laws into the professional game was considered, the players would have to be comprehensively involved with the decision.
Speaking on the Rugby Paper Podcast, he said: “There are countless instances in rugby where it will be practically impossible to tackle around the waist and I hope that we have some common sense there and we keep the game as it is which is a flowing and exciting game, we don’t want a penalty every other play.”
“For any kind of move for this to go into the professional game there would need to be a really strong consultation with players.”
Day, who made 220 Premiership appearances during his 17-year playing career, was appointed as the general secretary for the RPA this month, making him the figure head of the trade union.
The revolt against the new laws has been in full force with a petition opposing the changes surpassing 75,000 signatures less than two weeks after the announcement, leading to calls for the RFU to divulge stronger scientific evidence in which they based the law changes on.
The RFU has said that they based the changes on evidence gained from Orchid mouthguards which tracked the level of head impact players received.
They concluded that the waist or below tackle laws were optimal in creating a lower risk of contact with a ball carriers head and reduced the magnitude of head collisions.
They also referenced a similar trial in French rugby in 2019 which reported a 63% drop in head-on-head contacts.
However, in January 2019 the RFU prematurely ended a trial of new tackle height laws in the Championship Cup, which stopped players from tackling above the armpit, due to an increase in the number of concussions.
The RFU has stated that the aim of the tackle height reduction is to put players’ heads in the safest possible place by defining where the line of the tackle starts with ball carriers also encouraged to follow the principle that rugby is a game of evasion.
The news has seen a multitude of professional players publicly condemn the new laws with many questioning their effect on player safety as they took to social media to voice their opinions.
Gloucester captain Lewis Ludlow tweeted: “Well concussions are about to go through the roof in the community game!”
London Irish prop Ollie Hoskins, who was part of the short-lived trial of similar laws in the Championship Cup during the 2018/19 season, added: “Tackle choice is situational and forcing low tackles in all cases is even more dangerous.”
Written by Cam Stephens
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