Deans welcomes introduction of ELVs for Tri Nations
By Darren Walton, 3 Jun 2008 Darren Walton is a Roar Pro
New Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has welcomed the introduction of the contentious new “experimental law variations” for this year’s Tri Nations tournament involving Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Australian Rugby Union chief John O’Neill today revealed that SANZAR officials had finally agreed to a compromise which will allow the ELVs to be used in the annual six-match series.
New Zealand officials had been holding out, but O’Neill happily said “I believe we’ve found a resolution over the weekend”.
“I don’t know whether it’s been announced yet, but we may as well announce it now,” he said at today’s naming of the Wallabies and Australia A squads in Sydney.
“We’ll be playing under the Super 14 ELVs plus the two that the IRB approved: unlimited numbers in the lineout and pulling down the maul.
“I think that’s a fairly reasonable outcome, given South Africa and Australia wanted the Super 14 ELVS – particularly the sanctions – as a pivotal part of the ELVs.
“And we would have to, in the November tour to the northern hemisphere, embrace unlimited numbers in the lineout and (being allowed to pull) down the maul, in any case.
“So putting them into the Tri Nations, I think, is a pretty sensible compromise and I thank everyone involved in that process for getting on the same page.”
The ELVs, designed to improve the game as a spectacle, were first used during the now-defunct Australian Rugby Championship last year.
They were also applied during this year’s Super 14 and led to more tries and more appealing rugby.
Deans said it was a relief for coaches and players alike that SANZAR powerbrokers had had finally reached a resolution on the implementation of the ELVs.
“It’s just to know where the line in the sand is,” he said after naming Australia’s 30-man squad for the upcoming home Tests with Ireland and France.
“From a coaching perspective and a playing perspective, that’s all we need to know with it.”
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Spiro Zavos said | June 3rd 2008 @ 9:54am | Report comment
The pulling down of the maul variation will increase the variations teams use in the lineouts, as will the numbers variation. When ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ came in South African teams especially became very inventive with their lineout play. That seems to have stopped with the obsession with the slow-plod maul. Hopefully, we’ll see more of the earlier inventiveness coming back into lineout play.