Head of Match Officials at the URC, Tappe Henning, says that the competition has been permitted by World Rugby to continue an \u2018experimental law\u2019.<\/p>\n
Due to the technology available to TMOs in the United Rugby Championship<\/a>, there is less need for a Foul Player Review Officer, A.K.A TMO bunker, in the competition. Since the global implementation of the 20-minute red card, the fifth official would be called on to rule on whether a yellow card was sufficient punishment or the incident was worthy of being upgraded.<\/p>\n Where the URC are world leaders<\/p>\n However, last season those duties were handed to the TMO in the URC, with Henning confirming that will be the case again in 2026\/27 with the competition being a world leader in this regard.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got 25 match officials who will officiate in the middle and a group of 28 TMOs who will do the TMO role,\u201d he told reporters in the build-up to the new season.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m pleased to also share that our TMO process from last year will continue. That was the experimental law that World Rugby<\/a> has given us permission to apply, where the TMO is the foul play review officer because we have the technology to independently review foul play incidents, and where we can then also apply the 20-minute red card in our competition, similar to last year. We are world leaders in that.\u201d<\/p>\n Last season, much was made of the fact that TMOs in the Investec Championship were reliant on the host country\u2019s broadcasters<\/a> for footage when reviewing any incident but that won\u2019t be a concern in the URC.<\/p>\n This is because the tournament will once again make use of Hawk-Eye and Mobi technology, meaning that the officials will have access to all the necessary angles.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have upgraded our facilities with Hawk-Eye and Mobi technology in South Africa to support that function, and we have seen some positive outcomes: an increase in accuracy and less time it takes to review,\u201d the former referee added.<\/p>\n Why URC referee boss \u2018strongly\u2019 disagrees with World Rugby\u2019s stance on coaches\u2019 meetings: \u2018How can we work together if we don\u2019t talk?\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n Sly scrum tactics<\/p>\n One of the other topics Henning was asked to comment on was the issue around underhanded scrum tactics to avoid a fair contest at the set-piece. In 2024, World Rugby tweaked the lawbook, removing the scrum option from a free-kick, which created an opportunity for weaker scrummaging teams to avoid the set-piece by conceding free-kicks with tactics like early engagements.<\/p>\n Henning says that many teams are still not happy with the tweak but he added that he hasn\u2019t seen a trend of sides utilising those sly tactics yet. However, it is something that the URC is monitoring and will provide feedback to World Rugby on if it does become problematic.<\/p>\n URC referee boss wants officials to \u2018win over the fans\u2019 and rejects \u2018coaching players\u2019 claim<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSome teams aren\u2019t comfortable with the changes; it is unfortunate that a strong scrummaging team can be almost nullified if a team is awarded a free kick and a scrum can\u2019t be chosen,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n