USA Rugby Laws Committee Ruling
Please see below from Peter Watson and distribute as you see fit. We have been
getting a lot of questions about this of late.
In response to your email in reference to the number of players on our
roster…we’ve interpreted the below ruling as such, that we can present to the
referee 6 front row replacements, thus allowing for 23 players on the roster
should a front row player go down. Please advise.
In May the IRB approved a change to Law 3 that permits National Unions to
enact
> local regulations governing certain aspects of Front Row replacements
(although
> this was not fully communicated to the Unions until late July). The USA
> Competitions Committee has made some changes and they have been approved by
the
> Rugby Committee, the Board of Directors and the USA Rugby Congress.
>
> The precise change is copied below. Please ensure that this is
> distributed to all Referee Societies, Individual Referees, Local and
Territorial Unions in your areas. This is to be implemented immediately for all
matches that lead in any way to a National Championship.
>
> The key points are:
>
> Total number of replacements is directly linked to the number of suitably
> trained and experienced Front Row players that are presented on the team’s
> roster for the match.
>
> If a team has five front-row capable players, the total number on the roster
> may be no more than 21 (e.g. six subs instead of seven).
>
> If a team presents six front-row capable players, the total number on the
> roster may be up to 23 (e.g. eight subs total).
>
> If a game has to go to non-contested scrums due to the departure of a player,
> that player may not be replaced and the team will continue short a player.
>
> I apologize to those who asked me about this over the last couple of weeks.
> You probably got a fairly non-responsive answer. That was because I had to
wait
> for the proper authorities to make their decision.
>
> Please feel free to write or call if you have questions regarding this change
> to Law 3.
>
> Peter Watson
> Chair, USA Rugby Law Committee
