Rugby: June tests will be under new rules

Lyndon Bray is confident. Photo / Getty Images

The June test window is expected to provide definitive proof the Northern Hemisphere will have to accept tougher rulings at the tackled ball and scrums.

The Sanzar nations have bought into the new law interpretations and are committed to making them work in Super 14 while the Six Nations have declined to trial them in their current championship as they have played five months of their season under a different emphasis.

There had been concerns that, come the June tests, the IRB would back down and not enforce the new interpretations to give the Northern Hemisphere nations more time to decide whether they would accept them.

But New Zealand Rugby Union referee manager Lyndon Bray, who is also doubling as the Sanzar co-ordinator during the Super 14 to ensure there is consistency of application, says he's confident the interpretations will be globally implemented before too long.

"The June window will be a challenge but we can't afford to go backwards on this," said Bray.

"What we are hearing from England is that they want to see the same things over there.

"The game needs to change and it needs to change in a hurry."

A mix of Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere referees will be appointed to officiate the June tests when the All Blacks play Ireland and Wales twice.

The All Black coaches have expressed their desire to see tough rulings as they believe it will speed up the game, turn the scrum into a true contest and encourage teams to attack more.

Bray says the IRB are also sold on the idea and are particularly keen to see the scrum cleaned up as the spectre of around 20 collapsed set-pieces per test is killing the sport as a spectacle.

The Europeans have united under Irishman Donal Courtney, which is a positive sign the desire is there to have all referees working to the same script.

"In November, all the tier one countries met," says Bray, "and we essentially agreed we needed to change. The desire is there to make our decisions unified, global and simplified."