The National Rugby League has confirmed changes to the interchange rule and the introduction of a shot clock for scrums and drop-outs that will take effect from next season.
NRL Trophy Photo: Photosport
The NRL says the moves are designed to make the game safer for the players and more entertaining for fans.
It says the decision to reduce the number of interchanges allowed in a game from 10 to eight is designed to stop the game becoming "more structured, defensive and predictable in years to come".
The league decreased the number of interchanges from 12 to 10 in 2008 and according to NRL Head of Football Todd Greenberg this further reduction would make players safer as the likelihood of "collision injuries" would be reduced.
The timing of the shot clock is not confirmed but Greenberg claimed its introduction will "make the game more continuous and minimise time wasting and stoppages".
Currently, teams are supposed to have 40 seconds to take a drop-out before the referees stops the game clock.
These changes were made after a review conducted by a committee headed by Dr Kevin Norton, a professor of exercise science in the school of health and sciences at the University of South Australia.
The Queensland Cup, NSW Cup and National Youth Competition have apparently expressed their intentions to follow suit with the interchange reduction.
The implementation of a referee bunker is also close to being rubber-stamped, with the proposal set to be put before the ARL Commission later in the year.
Statistics reveal the video referee is being called on an average of four times a game, leaving fans waiting up to three minutes for live action to resume.
About 30 games have already been trialled with the new technology, with early results reducing time wasting by half.
