Test referee Angus Gardner believes Super Rugby Pacific’s law innovations are enhancing rugby as a spectacle.
The Sanzaar tournament introduced a series of trial laws aimed at reducing stoppages, including limiting scrum options for certain infringements.
“I think one of the things Super Rugby has really tried to promote in its product is flow,” Gardner said on the Rugby Unity podcast.
“If you look at the innovations over the last couple of seasons, they’ve been designed to create more opportunities for the game to keep moving.”
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While critics argue that some of the law changes depower the scrum, Gardner believes the intent is clear.
“We’re looking for opportunities to get the game back up and operational rather than necessarily going to a scrum,” he explained.
“I know that might be at odds with how some purists see the game, but we’ve been asked to buy into a product that prioritises continuity.”
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Gardner says referees are actively encouraged to reward attacking intent and momentum under the current framework.
“We’re looking for reasons to keep the game going, looking for opportunities to award tries and reward momentum,” he said. “Teams, coaches and referees have all bought into that approach.”
Central to this shift is the ongoing balance between accuracy and entertainment value – a tension Gardner describes as the “art of refereeing”.
“There’s always a balance between accuracy and flow,” he said. “Our key principles are safety, fairness, equity and flow and it’s about how you manage those in the moment.”
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Despite some resistance, Gardner is adamant the changes are delivering a better on-field product and could provide a blueprint for the wider game.
Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
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