Will we see Antoine Dupont receive a red card and wait 20 minutes on the sidelines with the XV of France? The reduced red card will be tested this fall during international matches in November but will remain an option for referees.
“The referees will retain the possibility of sanctioning a definitive red card for unfair play deemed deliberate and dangerous,” explained this Friday in a press release Six Nations Rugby, which organizes the international matches in the fall. “However, referees will have the option of only issuing a 20-minute red card for technical fouls”, for “unintentional” fouls, the press release specifies.
French rugby “firmly” opposed
With this reduced red card, an excluded player would still no longer be able to return to the pitch, but could be replaced after 20 minutes, allowing his partners to no longer finish the match at 14. This possibility of choosing between two red cards, one permanent or one of 20 minutes, is according to Six Nations Rugby different from the option desired by World Rugby, which recently announced that it wanted to generalize a 20-minute red card.
Validated by the executive committee, this latest rule could be adopted worldwide if approved by the World Rugby council on November 14. The French Rugby Federation, the League, and the French players’ union Provale this week declared themselves “firmly” opposed to this change, like the Irish federation on Friday.
Other rules currently being tested will be put into practice during these fall meetings, such as the 30-second limit for playing scrums and throw-ins in order to increase effective playing time. Scorers will also only have 60 seconds to convert after a try, which allows this time to be aligned with that of a penalty. The rule is already in force in the Top 14 this season.
