Six new laws but still no scrums

The RFL Board has ratified recommendations from the RFL Laws Committee for the 2021 season.

The Laws Committee held a virtual meeting on January 20 and received presentations regarding the Covid pandemic, head contact and concussion.

The committee also heard from NRL Head of Elite Competitions, Graham Annesley, about the new laws to be introduced in the NRL competition for 2021.

The emergency law introduced for the restart of the 2020 season in July, in response to the situation regarding Covid-19 - removing scrums and replacing them with a handover of possession - will be retained (with the shot clock application removed).

However. the situation will be kept under review, and the hope is that the emergency law will be removed, and that scrums will return, before the end of the 2021 season – certainly at Betfred Super League level, given the need to prepare players for the Rugby League World Cup in the autumn (with Rugby League’s International Laws still including scrums).

In addition, six law changes for 2021 have been recommended and approved, which will be applied at all levels of the game. These changes include flexibility for the attacking team on the lateral positioning of scrums; a reward for 20/40 kicks; a handover of possession for an incorrect play-the-ball; and the removal of scrums when the ball goes into touch.

(the full details of the six law changes are on the RFL website – https://www.rugby-league.com/article/57624/rfl-board-ratify-laws-for-the–season)

The Laws Committee considered, but rejected, two further law changes that have been introduced by the NRL for 2021: extending the “Six Again” law that was introduced in 2020 for ruck offences, to include 10 metre offside infringements; and awarding two points for drop goals kicked from outside the 40-metre line.

Dave Rotheram, the RFL’s Chief On-Field Officer, said:

“Thanks are due to the members of the RFL’s Laws Committee, which comprises a range of experts from all sections of the game, and also to Graham Annesley, who attended the meeting and explained the background to the law changes introduced by the NRL in 2020 and 2021.
“The RFL has been keen to achieve as much consistency as possible between the laws applied in both hemispheres, both in domestic competitions and through the International Laws.
“A greater degree of harmonisation was achieved through the law changes introduced for the resumption of the 2020 season – notably the adoption of “Six Again” – and that process will continue with the law changes introduced for 2021.
“However, we remain unconvinced by the arguments for introducing a two-point drop goal, believing this to be a fundamental change in the laws of the game which could have unintended consequences in discouraging teams from seeking to score tries, especially late in each half.
“The Laws Committee was also not persuaded of the merits of extending Six Again to cover 10 metre offside infringements.
“Regarding scrums, medical and scientific evidence was the key, as when the initial decision was made to suspend them for the restart of the 2020 season. With Covid-19 remaining prevalent in society, their reintroduction could present additional risk to the health of the players, and would significantly increase the number of close contacts in a match which could lead to more postponements.
“Therefore, the decision was made to maintain the position as at the end of 2020 for the start of the 2021 season. However, the Laws Committee agreed that the public health situation should be kept under constant review, and that scrums should be reintroduced as soon as possible – with the expectation that scrums will remain in the International Laws and therefore feature in the Rugby League World Cup in the autumn.
“The Committee agreed that scrums could be reintroduced to certain parts of the game and not others, again depending on the public health situation.”

Robert Elstone, Executive Chairman of Super League Europe and a member of the Laws Committee, said:

“Super League always welcomes changes that add excitement for our fans and showcase the unique qualities of our players. Also, we welcome alignment of rules across the two leading Rugby League competitions - so it was especially helpful to hear directly from Graham Annesley to understand the reasons for this season’s changes in the NRL, and to get closer to them on future potential changes.”

Attendees at the RFL Laws Committee meeting on January 20 were: