Summer Bulletin 19 August – Two weeks to go!

With just 2 weeks before the start of the season once again, here’s some important information to help you with that last minute preparation

Pre-season meet-up

There will be a pre-season meet up for all referees on Tuesday 30 August at 7pm, at Dudley Kingswinford RFC, Swindon Rd, Wall Heath, Kinver, Kingswinford DY6 0AW. We’ll cover just a few pre-season preparation points, including

• New law trials/implementations
• “The big 5”: The scrum, line-out, tackle, ruck & maul, and how we should approach refereeing them as a group this season

Pitch conditions

The long dry spell has mean that many pitches are hard, cracked and grass is short. Please see the RFU’s guidance on pitch condition procedures which can be found here. In summary, “the referee has no involvement in the decision of either team to refuse to play the match, but can refuse to officiate if they believe it is unsafe to do so”

Watch this space for more pre-season announcements in the run up to September