Scottish Rugby announce Law Variations Trials for Mini & Youth Rugby

For season 2018/19, Scottish Rugby are to trial a set of law variations for mini and youth rugby.

The trial will form the basis of research into different playing formats which will help to provide building blocks to the 15-a-side game, kicking-off with festivals and triangular fixtures before progressing to knockouts, tournaments and leagues.

Clubs have often noted that one of the issues with player retention is the big jumps between the requirements in different age groups, with challenges noted in moving from mini to youth level (especially regarding pitch size), and then moving up to Under 16 and then Under 18.

The idea behind the trial is that players will have more time to get to grips with the basics (running, evading, catching and passing the ball) before moving onto tackling and contact skills.

The trial period starts on August 1st, when Scottish Rugby will undertake a match analysis project to determine the impact of each trial.

Scottish Rugby will deliver a series of regional roadshows through-out June to set out the trials to Clubs.

The law variations are specifically designed to keep the game fun whilst allowing young players to improve skills and their team work, with Scottish Rugby’s Head of Training & Education, Neil Graham saying:
“Young people tell us that, above all else, they want to have fun playing rugby with their friends. Both expert opinion and Scottish Rugby’s own research have shown that there is often an over emphasis on winning at the younger age groups, leading to over playing of the able players and under playing those less able players to achieve results."

“The revised competitive format information puts inclusivity and each player’s skill development first, with the increasing intensity of competition introduced later.

The locations of the workshops taking place in West Region are Dumfries Rugby Club (11th June), Scotstoun Stadium (13th June) and Marr Rugby Club (20th June).

The full SRU story and details about booking onto the Roadshows are available here.