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IRB agrees to trial changes
From correspondents in Paris, France
May 02, 2008
THE International Rugby Board council has approved a global trial of Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) designed to reduce the number of turnover situations in a match.
The ELVs will run over a 12-month period starting on August 1, 2008.
The trial will cover all levels and involve 13 of the 23 ELVs, dubbed Stellenbosch after the South African university where the rules were first tested out.
The new rules were introduced on an experimental basis in approved tournaments around the world since 2006 and now will be rolled out in the northern hemisphere, the IRB said in a statement.
``The Council's decision to implement a global trial of Experimental Law Variations represents an important milestone for the future of the Game. It vindicates the process that was adopted by Council in 2004 for future Law amendments. The Council congratulated the Law Project Group on its unprecedented work over the past two years,'' said IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset.
The ELVs are essentially designed to help promote more ball in play and attractive free-flowing rugby and have already been trialled in the southern hemisphere.
The IRB added it had agreed that ELVs concerning sanctions not already approved for global trials would be further trialled in a selected elite Northern Hemisphere competition in the 2008/09 season.
The IRB continued: ``The Southern Hemisphere will continue to play under the various ELV programme environments that exist in that part of the world at present. It would be unfair to change the playing environment under which countries in the south are currently playing in competitions such as the Super 14.''
The rule changes came after a laws study group was tasked with suggesting changes to speed up the game while reducing the influence of penalty-kicks which would in future only result from foul play and offside. Other offences would merit a free-kick or scrum award.
Agence France-Presse