The 20-minute red card will be used during the Rugby Championship after SANZAAR decided to reintroduce the law trial despite it being rejected by World Rugby for a global rollout.
The ruling has been used for the past three Super Rugby seasons and in last year’s Rugby Championship but appeared to be going nowhere after World Rugby’s high-performance committee voted against it being rolled out in a global trial, a necessary step for the law to be adopted. As a result, the full 80-minute red card was used in July Test tours.
By allowing red-carded players to be replaced after 20 minutes, southern hemisphere teams are continuing to push for its acceptance, claiming that the use of the law in the upcoming tournament, which kicks off on August 6, between Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina is crucial for the game's integrity. Australia coach Dave Rennie and England coach Eddie Jones are just two high-profile individuals involved in a law review group backing the trial.
