| RFU Council approves reduction in tackle height across community rugby in England from 2023/24 |
| Issued by Rugby Football Union |
| To support player welfare, the RFU Council agreed on Monday 16 January to lower the height of the tackle across the community game from 1 July 2023. Designed to improve player safety and informed by data, this change aims to reduce head impact exposure and concussion risk in the tackle for both the ball carrier and tackler. Evidence from studies has consistently demonstrated that higher contact on the ball carrier and closer proximity of the ball carrier and tacklers’ heads are associated with larger head impacts (as measured by smart mouthguards) and an increased risk of concussion. Lowering the height of the tackle and encouraging the tackler to bend more at the waist will minimise the risk of this occurring while maintaining the tackle as an integral part of the game. The RFU Council’s unanimous vote will result in law variations from next season, 2023/24, with the tackle height being set at waist height or below. Ball carriers will also be encouraged to follow the principle of evasion, which is a mainstay of the game, to avoid late dipping and thereby avoid creating a situation where a bent tackler may be put at increased risk of head-on-head contact with the ball carrier through a late or sudden change in body height of the ball carrier. The changes will apply across the community game (clubs, schools, colleges and universities) at both age-grade and adult levels – National One and below in the men’s game and Championship One and below in the women’s game. Programmes to support players, coaches and match officials, including detailed law application guidelines are being developed to ensure players, match officials and volunteers will be ready for next season. Speaking about the law change to be implemented in season 2023/24, RFU President Nigel Gillingham said: “Players’ welfare must always be at the centre of decisions we make about how we play the game of rugby. Evidence from our own research and from around the world clearly shows that lowering the tackle height will reduce head impact exposure and the risk of concussion. The RFU Council is able to influence how the game is played at the community level in this country and, therefore, has unanimously supported the decision to lower the tackle height to waist level. The tackle will remain the primary method of stopping the ball carrier using safe techniques that are taught from an early age. “While this change will apply to matches in the community game in England, the RFU will continue its work to reduce head impacts in contact training in both the community and elite games and be supportive of any law changes that World Rugby proposes for matches at the elite level that will further reduce head impact exposure.” What to expect Reduced tackle height for all community rugby: Tackles must be made at the line of the waist and below. The aim is to put players’ heads in the safest possible place by defining in law where the line of the tackle may start. A greater focus on the actions of the ball carrier: Ball carriers will be encouraged to follow the principle that rugby is a game of evasion, and they should avoid late dipping and thereby avoid creating a situation where a bent tackler may be put at increased risk of head-on-head contact with the ball carrier through a late or sudden change in body height of the ball carrier. Match officials will focus on the actions of the ball carrier as well as the tackler when head contact occurs. Further background to the change for next season Player welfare remains at the heart of all decision-making. By making the decision now, the RFU Council has demonstrated its continued commitment to player welfare and recognised the importance of giving coaches, match officials and players time to prepare. Based on extensive research and evaluations of law changes in England, South Africa, France and New Zealand, evidence demonstrates that a waist height tackle or below is the optimal height to provide a meaningful reduction in the height of contact on the ball carrier, a reduction in the risk of contact with the ball carrier’s head and a reduction in the risk of contact for the tackler’s head. A lower tackle height is also associated with a reduction in the magnitude of head impacts, a key target for reduction. France, which introduced similar changes in its domestic game in 2019, reported a 63% reduction in head-on-head contacts. It also reported this move has led to a more fluid game with reduced levels of kicking, increased passing, offloads and line breaks. |
Community Game Update 19 January 2023
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| 1. ACTION REQUIRED RFU Council approves lowering of the tackle height across community rugby in England from 2023/24 To support player welfare, the RFU Council agreed on Monday 16th January to lower the height of the tackle across the community game(Adult & Age Grade) from 1st July 2023. Find out more information about the law change and what to expect, including training support in this piece. Mandatory Player Registration 2023/24 From next season, all players, in all formats of the game (including non-contact), will be required to register to play rugby within RFU member clubs annually. More information on the benefits and next steps in this piece. Age Grade Rugby Update & Actions The new year signals the restart of Age Grade Rugby in clubs, schools and colleges. This article contains reminders and actions for a few key elements to get your rugby back underway for the second half of the season. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Rugby World Cup 2025 Impact Programme – Facility fund closes 31st January Part of the Rugby World Cup 2025 impact programme is to help improve club facilities and the experience for female supporters and players. Clubs can apply for funds to support female toilet upgrades and sanitary packages before the deadline on the 31st. Club Rugby Support Fund 2022/23 The Community Rugby Support Fund for 2022/23 is now live. As with last year, the purpose of this fund is to support voting member clubs, CBs and referee societies who are in greatest financial need. The claim window closes on 19th February. Every Game Matters For A Chance To Play At Twickenham As part of the RFU’s #PlayTogetherStayTogether campaign, every team participating in a men’s merit table/league or women’s national challenge league (including the Allianz Inner Warrior Series) now has the chance to play at Twickenham Stadium on Bank Holiday Monday, 1 May, 2023. More details can be found in this piece. Honda Volunteer of The Year Nominations Now Open The Honda Volunteer of The Year Awards 2023 nominations are now open for the three categories; Game For All, Unsung Hero and Challenging Spirit. Nominate your amazing volunteers before Friday 24th February. The National Rugby Survey The National Rugby Survey 2023 will be live between 20 January until 17 February and will be shared via email and social media. The survey is targeted at anyone who has been involved with community rugby in the 2022/23 season in some way. 3. FOR AWARENESS RFU Leagues & Papa Johns Community Cup update Read information about potential changes to the end of the league season date after the exceptional weather conditions experienced so far this season, plus the latest on the Papa Johns Community Cup. Submission Of Payment Of Player Declarations Declarations of payment of players are due to be submitted between 1 March and 30 June 2023. Find out more in this piece. Divisional U18s Programme returns in 2023 The RFU has confirmed the Divisional U18s programme – a culmination of matches played between the 28 Constituent Bodies – will return in 2023, providing a higher level of representative rugby and development opportunities for players, coaches and management. Read Online |
Lineout courses in Cornwall 2023
I am pleased to tell you that the Principle of the Lineout courses for 2023 in Cornwall and Devon are now live for bookings. Can I please ask you to promote these courses with your club coaches and via your club social media channels.
Please see the poster attached with full details including booking links. It would be amazing to fill these courses up this year! PDF link here
Many thanks for all your support and your club for hosting.
Cheers
Reedy
NHS Ambulance Strike Days
| Important information regarding NHS Ambulance Services |
| There are planned NHS Ambulance Services strikes on Wednesday 11 January and Monday 23 January. As most community rugby activity takes place on different days this is unlikely to affect many community club activities. If your club has training/fixtures on these dates you may wish to limit it to non-contact. Clubs should factor this into your risk assessment and planning of any activities taking place on those days, dependent on the ambulance provision available to you. |
Reggie Gough appointed new CRFU RugbySafe Lead
CRFU Chairman Dave Saunter made the following statement following Reggie’s appointment. “The CRFU are excited to appoint Reggie Gough to the position of Rugby Safe lead, taking over from Bob Hubble.
The county would like to thank Bob for all his hard work, especially taking the lead on delivering First Aid courses all over the county, when the RFU could not supply.
Reggie’s resume is detailed below and as you can see brings a wealth of experience to the post.
REGGIE GOUGH
CRFU Rugby Safe Lead.
Reggie Gough (pictured below) is a Registered Paramedic who spent 18 years flying operationally as a Search and Rescue Winchman Paramedic on Coastguard Helicopters around the U.K.
He ended his Search and Rescue flying career on Rescue 924 out of Newquay – Cornwall’s
own SAR helicopter!
Since leaving operational flying, Reggie is now Head of Emergency Casualty Care for His
Majesty’s Coastguard. He has a team of 70 full time Casualty Care Instructors who deliver
training and revalidation to 3500 Coastguard personnel around the U.K.
He entered his rugby playing days during his school years, Captaining his school team at
James Gillespie’s in Edinburgh. After leaving school he played for various rugby teams
around Scotland including, North Berwick in East Lothian, Garioch in Aberdeenshire and
Lochaber in Fort William.
He is a staunch tight-head prop!
He is most passionate about the team he played for when he lived overseas – the Bermuda
Police RFC. He is still in regular contact with his Club and is one of their ‘Faded Blue’ ex-
players. He will be making an appearance for them during a ‘Tour’ to Ireland later this year!!
He is a currently active Coach for his local team, Launceston RFC, where he is involved in
coaching age-grade rugby, currently the U13 section.
He lives in North Cornwall with his wife, Emma, and sons Archie and Ozzie and their
Rhodesian Ridgeback, Kobi. They collect their new Ridgeback puppy in March. He’ll be called
Doddie!
Reggie is absolutely passionate about ensuring rugby is safely enjoyed by all and that both
the physical and mental wellbeing of all is taken seriously.
He is thrilled to have been appointed as the CRFU Rugby Safe Lead.
Raymond George RIP
It is with great sadness that the President and Officers of Cornwall RFU have learned of the passing of former county player Raymond George (pictured above middle back row).
Raymond, who played for both Falmouth and Redruth, donned the Black & Gold shirt on 44 occasions, most notably as a member of the 1969 Cornwall side that played Lancashire in the County Championship Final at Redruth in front of a crowd of 23,000.
Playing in the back row Raymond kicked a penalty goal during the game but couldn’t prevent Lancashire winning 11-9.
Funeral details;
Penmount Crematorium, Truro
20/01/2023 at 11:30 am.
Introduction to Refereeing Course
Please find in the link details on the new Introduction to Refereeing course. Clubs can arrange this course themselves by following the information in the pdf link here.
Community Game Update 6 December
| Tuesday 6 December Stay up to date with news about the community game by following @RFU on Twitter here. Community Game Update Read Online 1. ACTION REQUIRED The deadline for your 2022 Club Safeguarding Audit is 31 December A reminder to all clubs who offer age grade activity, you must complete the Safeguarding Audit by 31 December 2022. You can find further information on how to conduct the audit in this section. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Rugby World Cup 2025 Impact Programme – Facility fund Part of the Rugby World Cup 2025 impact programme is to help improve club facilities and the experience for female supporters and players. From today, 6 December 2022, clubs can apply for funds to support toilet upgrades and sanitary packages. More information is in this piece. Tackling energy use in rugby clubs and using Artificial Grass Pitch (AGPs) As energy prices rise and impact clubs across the country, we share some tips on reducing these costs. These include using AGPs, which could help save on the club’s electricity bills by reducing your floodlight usage and wear on pitches. Discover how you can book a local 365 AGP in this section. 3. FOR AWARENESS Age Grade affiliations reach over 150,000 players, incentives and GMS support trainers Age grade affiliation has reached over 150,000 players in the 2022/2023 season. In this article, Farnham RUFC and Hackney RFC share their experiences of how affiliation has worked for them. Also, a reminder of our incentives for age grade affiliation and GMS support trainers for clubs. Ways to support retention of players from age grade to adult rugby Hear from Surrey and Cheshire Constituent Bodies and clubs who have been running U21/U23 competitions to retain university players who might otherwise be lost from the game. Developing female match officials #Inspire 50 inspiring female referees lined up at England v Japan as part of the new Inspire campaign to attract more female match officials to the sport. This section discusses how you can get involved and more about the programme. Off-field support services for clubs A reminder of the off-field services for clubs, including guidance in legal and tax matters, licensing and VAT support. Many of these are free for clubs, so if you need help, read this article. Read Online |
Community Game Update 29 November
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| Headline News Adult Affiliation to begin in the 2023/2024 season After the implementation of age grade affiliation, which has already seen over 150,000 players affiliate in the 2022/2023 season, RFU Council members voted last week to introduce the same mandatory process in the adult game for the 2023/2024 season. There is no need to action anything at this stage, this article is for awareness only. 1. ACTION REQUIRED Deadline to enter the Papa Johns Men’s Community Cup is this week At midnight on 1 December, the entry period for the Papa Johns Men’s Community Cup will close. Some finals will be played at Twickenham, so don’t miss your chance to play at this iconic venue. Read this section to register your team and see what other benefits your club can receive by entering. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Game On Using Game On, you can ensure you still get your games played and recorded as a full 15-a-side match. Hear from players who took part in our recent Mike Tindall XV v James Haskell XV as to why Game On works for them. 3. FOR AWARENESS Enhancement to Electronic Match Card from today From today, 29 November, a change to Electronic Match Card for match days will be made. The enhancement means clubs can only select registered players, except in leagues where non-registered players are eligible to be selected. Read Online |
Remember to get your Game On
| Getting your Game On In the lead up to matchdays, in the adult game, you may be short of a full 15. With Game On, you only need a minimum of ten players per side to get the game played and treated as a full 15-a-side game*. David Flatman, explains more about Game On and how you can use it in the video below. Video Game On means you can still get your matches played with more flexible options, because every game matters. The 2022/2023 season has seen enhancements to Game On, including additional scrum options, which you can read more about below. |
| The scrum can be modified to allow for a contested 1.5m push. If you don’t have a front row or if you have players new to the front row, you still have the option to go uncontested. As long as the referee has been notified 30 minutes prior to kick off that Game On might be used, these changes can be made during the game if teams feel it appropriate. Game On is a great way to ensure players can play each week, even when short of a full 15.You can even choose to reduce the pitch size and duration of the match to suit the needs of the players. By enabling players to play each week, you will keep them engaged and coming back for more as you continue to build towards a full 15. 10 v 10 one week, 11 v 11 the next, hopefully you will soon be back to the full complement of players. So, before you think about cancelling or postponing a match, consider how you can Get your Game On using the flexible options available. *Check out our dedicated Game On page below which includes details about which leagues the options can be used in. Game On David Flatman Video |
