Australian Touch Rule Given Trial By Board

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31323, 20 March 1967, Page 8

Australian Touch Rule Given Trial By Board

(N.Z.P.A. -Reuter—Copyright) LONDON. The International Rugby Board has opened the way for trials in all Rugby countries of a variation of the Australian rule on kicking for touch. In a statement issued on Friday after its two-day meeting, the board said it had decided that any union could experiment with the variation for one month during the coming year.

Under the Australian rule if a player kicks the ball into touch on the full from anywhere but inside his own 25-yard line, the ensuing line-out is brought back to where the ball was kicked. Under international rules the lineout is held where the ball goes into touch, no matter where it is kicked. The only difference the board stipulated was that the rule would apply only from the half-way line in any trials —not the 25-yard line. W. Breckenridge, one of Australia’s two delegates to the meeting, said the board’s decision to permit a variation of the Australian rule was at least a move in the right direction. “It will help speed up the game and cut out unnecessary kicking,” he said. “If the halfway rule proves successful, the board may decide eventually to adopt the 25-yard rule.” Dr. Danie Craven, the president of the South African Rugby Board, told reporters afterwards the board discussed the cancellation of the New Zealand tour of South Africa because of the South African Government’s policy on racially mixed teams. He said the board came to no conclusion. “The matter was discussed, and it is still under consideration,” he said, declining to say anything further about it. Asked when it would be considered again, he replied: “Any time.” Board Concerned The board is also concerned about the general standard of play. It said in its statement that evidence pointed to the fact that the standard generally was not as good as it ought to be. The situation had arisen from the failure by players to observe fundamental laws, and the failure by referees to enforce these laws uniformly and consistently, by sending a player off if necessary. “The main matters to which

the board directs the attention of all players and referees are: “Failure to bind effectively in the front row of the scrummage and struggles by front row forwards to gain an unfair advantage by 1 illegal actions; failure to observe the off-side law. particularly at scrummage, maul and Une-out; over-vigorous and foul play the statement said. E. B. Eden, the Press Association’s Rugby reporter, commented:—“The first thing which strikes one is that the tour of the Wallabies this season has done Rugby in general another good turn. The Australians frequently showed us how the games, at its best, should be played. “Now the board’s statement gives full support to the complaints made by the Wallaby manager, Mr McLaughlan. “It was the struggling of front row forwards to gain an unfair advantage which led to the sending home of Ross Cullen, the Australian, following an ‘earbiting’ incident. Not Consistent Mr McLaughlin pointed out on several occasions that referees, as well as players, were not fulfilling the laws uniformly and consistently, and stressed the failure of opponents to observe the off-side law. more particularly in the mauls. “Now the board has made the

off-side law the same for mauls as for loose scrummages, perhaps there will be fewer cases of players entering mauls on the wrong side, for otherwise they will be off-side. “It is interesting to observe that a trial is to be given to the Australian law, for one cannot fail to consider that ft was the employment of this rule in their own country which led to the Wallabies being far more ready to run with the ball when their British opponents preferred to kick.