World Rugby has adopted a more lenient stance on deliberate knock-ons after coaches and officials convened in London ahead of the Nations Championship fixtures. The shift follows growing concern that players attempting legitimate interceptions were being penalised too harshly.
Eddie Jones, who attended the meeting, confirmed that the governing body now accepts one-handed intercept attempts as valid, provided the hand motion is not directed downwards. The former Australia coach praised the influence of Springboks flyers Cheslin Kolbe and Bryan Habana, whose ability to execute such plays helped illustrate the need for change. Jones described the previous interpretation as "quite absurd", noting that almost any failed one-handed attempt had resulted in automatic yellow cards.
The law has proved contentious throughout the Nations Championship, with Kurt-Lee Arendse among those sin-binned for unsuccessful intercept attempts during South Africa's clash with England in July. Jones observed that Rassie Erasmus and Dave Rennie were the most vocal contributors during the London discussions.
Meanwhile, Springbok assistant coach Mzwandile Stick has emphasised the importance of contestable kicks and transition play in the modern game. Speaking ahead of Saturday's Nations Championship fixture against Italy in Turin, Stick outlined his philosophy on loose balls from aerial contests. He challenged his players to commit fully to such situations, drawing a comparison to playing the lottery. The assistant coach stressed that success in these scenarios requires both preparation and numerical superiority around the landing zone, with unstructured defensive systems offering significant attacking opportunities.