Six Nations Rugby will introduce several innovations to the upcoming Summer Nations Series, which starts on July 29th and span five weekends, before concluding on August 27thin Paris.
Match officials will also benefit from Hawk-Eye technology, that will act as the independent video replay operator, to support referees and enhances accuracy of decision making.
Commenting on the innovations set to appear in the Summer Nations Series, Julie Paterson, Director of Rugby at Six Nations Rugby, said:
“Bringing the latest technology, processes and rugby focussed innovations into Six Nations Rugby competitions is a core part of helping drive the collective growth of the game. The likes of the Bunker Trial and Hawk-Eye will offer even more support to match officials and the decisions they make in the heat of a live match environment.
For fans, we want to bring them as close to the action as possible, and innovations like Shot Clock and Ref Cam can do this. Everyone in the game wants to keep developing and pushing new initiatives, and the Summer Nations Series offers a great opportunity to deliver in this area.”
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The key changes are summarised in bullet points below:
- The referee will put a stopwatch shot clock on kickers who will have 90 seconds to kick a conversion from the time a try is awarded, and 60 seconds for penalties, from the time the referee signals a shot at goal.
- Match officials will expect lineouts and scrums to be formed within 30 seconds of the respective marks being set, and the ball to be used within 5 seconds of a ruck being formed.
