The new laws set for use this fall will change international 7s, according to USA 7s head coach Mike Friday.

Coming off a late-summer player camp, Friday told FloRugby that his team's tactics for the Silicon Valley 7s in November and the Sevens World Series in December will almost certainly be affected by the new laws.

The key changes for 7s revolves around the ruck. There's the "Italy Rule" which says that a ruck now forms when one player shows up to position him or herself over the tackled player and the ball. This law change was put in place because of last season's Six Nations, during which Italy didn't send a defender over the tackled player, and thus, according to rugby laws, there was no ruck and therefore no offside line.

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Italy's great sin, of course, was doing this against England and making England look bad. Upshot -- the law changes.

The other law change is that the tackler now has to retreat to his side of the ball before he can do anything in the ruck. Previously, a tackler could stand up and immediately try stealing the ball from the tackled player -- he didn't have to come through the "gate" like everyone else. That is now changed to -- and we quote from World Rugby's official rationale -- "make the tackle/ruck simpler for players and referees and more consistent with the rest of that law."

Friday said this changes 7s rugby dramatically.

"I think it's making this a possession game," Friday said. "With a ruck formed when the second man comes in, and with the tackler having to get up and swing around and come back in, it could become a game where it's all about continuity and possession."



Friday suspects turnovers in the ruck are going to be much more rare, and as a result he is looking at new tactics. He said he likely won't be thinking about changing how he puts together his team, but he is changing his defense.

"We are changing our defensive system, and I think during the first few tournaments all of the teams will be feeling it out and evolving and changing," he said.

What may well be one change is the need for the positive-grade tackle. If a tackler drives the ballcarrier backward and then down onto the ground, the breakdown can occur behind the remaining offensive players. As a result, it will be easier for the defenders to swarm over the ball and steal it.

"It's going to become a case of picking your moments when to drive in the ruck," Friday said. "We will find a way."