Prem agrees refereeing overhaul to help England's World Cup bid
Premiership matches will be refereed differently this season, with offside and scrum brake-foot changes aimed at aligning club officiating with the Test game.
The Prem has agreed to change how its matches are refereed this season, with the offside line and the scrum brake-foot law among the areas to be policed differently, The Guardian reports. The aim is to bring club officiating closer to the international game ahead of next year's World Cup in Australia.
The Guardian understands the interpretations were agreed in the formal absence of relegation from the Prem this season. Borthwick met the directors of rugby last month, and the RFU's refereeing team gave a presentation on the intended changes.
Borthwick has said before that the breakdown is refereed differently in the Prem, where there is usually less of a contest, than at Test level. That area caused England repeated problems in a poor Six Nations. The four-Test series between South Africa and New Zealand over the summer showed how hard the leading nations contest it.
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England's scrum has improved since Borthwick's appointment, under assistant coach Tom Harrison. South Africa, winners of the past two World Cups, remain the benchmark there, and the scrum was a factor in their series win over New Zealand.
The Guardian noted that the RFU official Karl Dickson twice penalised the All Blacks hooker Codie Taylor for brake-foot in that series. The report continues on the point:
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If the Prem referees apply the brake-foot and offside interpretations as agreed, England's forwards may meet the Test standard in league games rather than for the first time in camp. Whether the breakdown is part of the package is not stated in the report.
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