Six Nations Rugby will introduce several innovations to the upcoming Summer Nations Series, which starts on July 29th and span five weekends, before concluding on August 27th in Paris.
The new Bunker review process and Hawk-Eye will feature across 13 of the 15 games in the Series, with these innovations intended to support referees and match officials in their decision making and encourage speed of game play.
The introduction of a Bunker trial in the Summer Nations Series is part of a game wide ambition to explore its future application and offer additional support to match officials.
Referees will remain the lead decision maker during games, but through the trial they will now have the option to refer any foul play incident, to a dedicated `Foul Play Review Officer’ (FPRO) situated within the Bunker, where a red card is not clear and obvious.
If after two video replays the in-play officiating team is unable to determine whether an incident warrants a red card then the referee will refer the incident to the Bunker, and the player will leave the field of play for 10 minutes.
The FPRO will then have up to 8 minutes to review the incident using all available technology and footage, to determine the outcome.
The FPRO will then communicate the decision to the in-play officiating team and the referee will either award the player a yellow card (and the player returns to the action following their 10-minute sin bin), or the referee will award a red card and the player stays off the field permanently, unable to be replaced.
Match officials will also benefit from Hawk-Eye technology, that will act as the independent video replay operator, to support referees and enhances accuracy of decision making.
For fans in the stadiums and watching at home, Shot Clock and Ref Cam stand to enhance their match day experience.
