Japan head coach Eddie Jones has revealed where the Springboks are comfortably better than any other nation in the world and tabled a law tweak that can offset that advantage.<\/b><\/p>\n
Rassie Erasmus\u2019 men lost just twice in 2025, falling to the Wallabies at Ellis Park and the All Blacks at Eden Park, but defended their Rugby Championship title.<\/p>\n
Jones\u2019 Brave Blossoms were one of the teams that the back-to-back world champions breezed past this year, and the experienced coach believes that the changes in the kicking laws have significantly benefited South Africa<\/a>.<\/p>\n In 2024, World Rugby<\/a> outlawed the \u2018escorts\u2019, which effectively blocked and stalled players chasing high kicks in order to give the catching player more space and time.<\/p>\n The change in the law means that there is a fiercer contest for the ball in the air and allows the kicking team to regain possession more frequently than before.<\/p>\n It has had a significant impact on the game, particularly at the international level, and Jones believes that it encourages teams to kick more than they used to, as it is an effective way to move up the pitch with possession.<\/p>\n Springboks rule the air<\/p>\n Having reviewed the data from the November internationals, Jones revealed eye-watering statistics that the removal of the escorts has produced.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the latest data coming out is that the probability of catching a high ball now for the defending team in a one-on-one duel is less than 30%,\u201d Jones<\/a> said on the Rugby Unity<\/a> podcast.<\/p>\n \u201cSo basically, the aerial contest is encouraging teams to kick high because you\u2019ve got a high percentage of winning the ball back, which means that you can get up the field quickly by kicking.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve seen that in the November series, where South Africa absolutely dominated that area. I think they\u2019re 50% better than any other team in the world, which is them maximising the way the game is being played now.<\/p>\n \u201cBut we\u2019re actually encouraging teams to kick higher more often now. If that\u2019s the game we want, that\u2019s okay, but we are going to see more of that, not less of it, because we all play a copycat game, and whatever is working for successful teams, we will tend to copy to a large degree.\u201d<\/p>\n Jones discussed the impact of the law tweak on the podcast in which World Rugby chair Brett Robinson appeared as a guest. The Japan coach tabled a way in which the law can remain intact but explained how the addition of a new rule would allow for a fairer contest.<\/p>\n He suggests adopting another rugby league law, denying attacking players the ability to slap the ball backwards and have to actually attempt to catch it.<\/p>\n Comment: Why South Africa want England again and why the wait matters more than it seems<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Domestic game is different<\/p>\n \u201cI think there\u2019s a question mark on how far we want that to go and maybe it\u2019s only going to get more profitable for the team to kick high in the future than not unless we bring in the disruptor rule, which the rugby league brought in to take that away that unless you\u2019re actively going for the ball in the air, you can\u2019t just take the space and try to create a distraction for the catcher,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo there are a couple of things to think about there. The other thing I think historically, if you think about rugby, like apart from certain periods, it\u2019s always been a high-kicking game, but is that the game people want to see now? That\u2019s the other part of the equation.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you think about it, most of the teams that were successful in World Rugby have been high-kicking games. They haven\u2019t been a ball in play. They might have played off kicks, but they haven\u2019t been a ball in play.<\/p>\n \u201cDomestically, around the world, that\u2019s been different; you\u2019ve had teams who have been able to do that on a domestic level, but historically, international rugby has always been a kicking game.\u201d<\/p>\n World Rugby boss bemoans \u2018hemispheric\u2019 cultural problem after the north \u2018frustratingly\u2019 stalled 20-minute red card<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Robinson, who revealed that World Rugby is conducting a review of the TMO processes and roles before the Shape of the Game meeting next year, argued that while he understands Jones\u2019 points, recently international matches have produced higher-scoring affairs.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only observation I\u2019d make over the recent period is that despite our frustrations, we\u2019ve actually had a lot of high-scoring rugby matches,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the scoring rates and the points that are being put regularly on the park at an international level, particularly the Autumn Series, are significant, rightly or wrongly, but there\u2019s definitely more appetite.\u201d<\/p>\n