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Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson can see merits in NRL rule change but wants it to be stress-tested before it’s brought into first grade.
Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson has cautioned the ARL Commission over ratifying significant ruck changes this week during the most critical time in NRL history.
The three-time premiership winner can see merits in scrapping ruck penalties to award a repeat set, but believes it needs to be stress-tested in the lower grades before getting the approval for the NRL.
“There’s real benefit in people infringing and having the fatigue come into it … It’s worth having a look at,” he told Fox Sports on Tuesday night.
“Not in one of the most critical times for our sport, in the history of our sport, we’re about to go into new eyeballs for the first time in decades.
“We’re about to go to some clean air space, we know the product well, it’s a great product, so let’s get it out there in its current form.”
Robinson was part of a competitions committee that included administrators, players, coaches and referees to discuss the merits of reverting to one referee as well as the ruck change when the competition resumes on May 28.
The idea to scrap the two-referee system was first put to Project Apollo on Friday as a cost-saving strategy, coupled with the six again rule change to help speed up the ruck.
However, Robinson said there was almost no support for it with the season set to start in two weeks.
Changes to the ruck in particular, he says, need to be carefully tested.
“I’m actually a fan of trialling this. I’d like to see 50 games of a lower competition in Canterbury Cup or under-20s played in that way because if you affect the ruck in our game, it’s the biggest area in our game, you’re going to affect the fabric of our game,” he said.
“The need for having a discussion about some of those things is clear.”
Robinson is the latest to hit out at the proposed move, however, it’s understood the ARL Commission will push ahead with the changes in a meeting this week.
© AAP
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