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Referees bosses have bowed to the wave of criticism over the obstruction rules and are set to abandon black-and-white interpretations.
After talks between referees chief Daniel Anderson and members of the NRL Competition Committee on Monday, it was decided to push ahead with changes to the contentious policing of obstruction in time for this weekend's round-five fixtures.
The development came as NRL CEO David Smith moved to give the committee greater powers by installing himself as chairman and ensuring the group met more often to oversee the game.
That move came, in part, due to the at-times savage criticism of the obstruction interpretations, which gave referees no discretion to rule.
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While the finer points of the changes to the rules have not yet been confirmed, it is understood that, from this week on, plays similar to the contentious disallowed tries to Cooper Cronk and Brett Morris in round three will be allowed.
Previously, Anderson's edict to referees has meant that an obstruction by a decoy runner anywhere on the field must be penalised.
''We're hoping to have a resolution to the issue that we've experienced with obstruction over the last few weeks,'' said the NRL's general manager of football operations, Nathan McGuirk, who held talks with Anderson on Monday.
''We're confident that we can have this in place prior to matches which will commence in round five. Daniel and his team have been working hard on this issue over the weekend to come up with a resolution.
''He's been consulting with members of the competition committee [on Monday].
''We're confident that we'll have a resolution that will alleviate some of the issues.''
While the Morris and Cronk no-try rulings were ridiculed by many, officials also faced increased scrutiny last weekend over the prospect of defending players milking penalties.
With that issue bubbling, Smith decided at the weekend that he would step in and chair the competition committee, which includes Wayne Bennett, Tim Sheens, Ivan Cleary, Laurie Daley, Darren Lockyer, Andrew Ryan and John Lang.
Cleary and Sheens have been vocal opponents of the obstruction interpretations, yet the Penrith coach maintains he has not been consulted about them, despite his presence on the committee.
Smith also wanted to give the group more formal powers to make changes and even terms of reference, while also demanding greater accountability.
To do so, the group will meet more regularly than previously planned. The committee is next due to meet in the week of Australia's Test against New Zealand, in Canberra later this month.
They will, no doubt, discuss the obstruction interpretations at that meeting but the significant change - allowing referees to use some discretion in rulings - will have been implemented by then.
While the obstruction debate has been one catalyst for Smith's intervention, there are others, notably heat and concussion guidelines.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/l...#ixzz2POhDsYRw
Great to see some common sense prevail.
After talks between referees chief Daniel Anderson and members of the NRL Competition Committee on Monday, it was decided to push ahead with changes to the contentious policing of obstruction in time for this weekend's round-five fixtures.
The development came as NRL CEO David Smith moved to give the committee greater powers by installing himself as chairman and ensuring the group met more often to oversee the game.
That move came, in part, due to the at-times savage criticism of the obstruction interpretations, which gave referees no discretion to rule.
Advertisement
While the finer points of the changes to the rules have not yet been confirmed, it is understood that, from this week on, plays similar to the contentious disallowed tries to Cooper Cronk and Brett Morris in round three will be allowed.
Previously, Anderson's edict to referees has meant that an obstruction by a decoy runner anywhere on the field must be penalised.
''We're hoping to have a resolution to the issue that we've experienced with obstruction over the last few weeks,'' said the NRL's general manager of football operations, Nathan McGuirk, who held talks with Anderson on Monday.
''We're confident that we can have this in place prior to matches which will commence in round five. Daniel and his team have been working hard on this issue over the weekend to come up with a resolution.
''He's been consulting with members of the competition committee [on Monday].
''We're confident that we'll have a resolution that will alleviate some of the issues.''
While the Morris and Cronk no-try rulings were ridiculed by many, officials also faced increased scrutiny last weekend over the prospect of defending players milking penalties.
With that issue bubbling, Smith decided at the weekend that he would step in and chair the competition committee, which includes Wayne Bennett, Tim Sheens, Ivan Cleary, Laurie Daley, Darren Lockyer, Andrew Ryan and John Lang.
Cleary and Sheens have been vocal opponents of the obstruction interpretations, yet the Penrith coach maintains he has not been consulted about them, despite his presence on the committee.
Smith also wanted to give the group more formal powers to make changes and even terms of reference, while also demanding greater accountability.
To do so, the group will meet more regularly than previously planned. The committee is next due to meet in the week of Australia's Test against New Zealand, in Canberra later this month.
They will, no doubt, discuss the obstruction interpretations at that meeting but the significant change - allowing referees to use some discretion in rulings - will have been implemented by then.
While the obstruction debate has been one catalyst for Smith's intervention, there are others, notably heat and concussion guidelines.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/l...#ixzz2POhDsYRw
Great to see some common sense prevail.
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