The IRB has asked national unions to trial the Experimental Law Variations or ‘Stellenbosch Laws’. Scotland, Australia and New Zealand will be testing the laws during domestic competitions.
Eight law variations have been identified with the aim of simplifying the game of rugby, and the IRB will consider any proposed law changes after the World Cup with the help of feedback from the trial nations.
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The Experimental Law Variations are as follows:
Flag Judges
01. To distinguish the new role of the touch judges, they have been renamed flag judges. Flag judges can indicate offside at the tackle by raising their flag horizontally in the direction of the offending team. This flag raising will be mirrored by the opposite lag judge so as to provide visual assistance to the referee. The referee however is not obliged to act on the offence.
Posts and Flags
02. Corner post, and post at corner of touch in goal and dead ball line are moved back 2 metres. This ensures consistency of touch along the entire length of the touch line and touch in goal line.
Inside the 22m line
03. When a defending player receives the ball outside the 22m line and passes, puts or takes the ball back inside the 22, the following can occur.
a. If the ball is then kicked directly into touch, the lineout is in line with where the ball was kicked.
b. If a tackle, ruck or maul is subsequently formed and the ball is then kicked directly into touch, the lineout is where the ball crossed the line.
The Lineout
04. On a quick throw in, the ball can be thrown straight or backwards towards the defenders goal line, but not forward towards the opposition goal line. So there will be no judging of a skew throw in a short lineout.
05. A player peeling off at the front of the lineout can do so as soon as the ball leaves the throwers hands.
06. The receiver from a lineout must stand 2m from the lineout.
07. The non throwing hooker does not have to stand between the 5 metre line and the touch line. They must conform to law wherever they stand.
08. There is no maximum number of players in the lineout but there is a minimum of 2.
09. Neither team determines numbers in the lineout.
10. Pre-gripping is allowed.
11. If a lineout throw is not straight, the option is a lineout or free kick to the non throwing team.
The Breakdown (tackle/post tackle)
12. Players entering the breakdown area must do so through the gate.
13. Immediately the tackle occurs there are offside lines.
14. The offside lines run parallel to the goal lines through the hindmost part of the hindmost player at the tackle.
15. A tackled player must immediately play the ball and may not be prevented from playing the ball by any player who is off their feet.
16. Any other player playing the ball at the breakdown must be on their feet.
17. If the ball is unplayable at the breakdown, the side that did not take the ball into contact will receive a free kick.
18. If the ball is received directly from a kick and a tackle occurs immediately, and the ball becomes unplayable, the free kick is given to the team who received the kick.
19. There are only 3 penalty offences (not including dangerous play) at the breakdown.
a. Offside for not coming through the gate.
b. Offside where defenders are in front of the last man on their side of the breakdown.
c. A tackled player must immediately play the ball and may not be prevented from playing the ball by any player who is off their feet .
20. Repeated infringements can be dealt with as per current law.
21. All free kicks are tap kicks including a mark, and a scrum option is available for all free kicks.
22.  Dangerous play will not be tolerated.
23.  The scrumhalf should not be touched unless he has his hands on the ball.
The Maul
24.  Defending players can pull down the maul.
25.  Players joining the maul must do so through the gate.
26.  If a maul becomes unplayable, the team not in possession at the start of the maul receives a free kick.
27.  The ‘truck and trailer’ is no longer an offence.
The Scrum
28.  The offside line for players who are not in the scrum and who are not the team’s scrum half, is 5m behind the hindmost foot of the scrum.
General Sanctions
26.  For all offences other than offside, not entering through the gate, and foul play, the sanction is a free kick.
Will be interesting to see which law changes will be introduced after the RWC.
It is essential that we introduce the new Ruck and maul law plus the 5 metre rule law for 2008,
Patrick.