Thursday 1 September 2016 17:29, UK
Wayne Barnes says player safety is top of the agenda for the new Aviva Premiership season amid minor law changes.
A number of alterations will be made ahead of the start of the campaign on Friday when Gloucester tackle Leicester at Kingsholm and Newcastle host Sale Sharks, including a move to banish simulation issues such as players diving or feigning injury, plus any back-chat directed at officials.
England's leading referee Barnes also said there will be a focus on in-the-air challenges, admitting they are still a subject for debate.
"Challenges in the air is still one of the hardest decision-making areas for the referee because there is so much to take into consideration," Barnes said, during a Rugby Football Union laws media briefing on Thursday.
James Haskell admits the pressure will be on Wasps to perform this season
"We will be looking at all the factors that aggravate it. For example, does the player deliberately play a man in the air, which would obviously aggravate it? How did he land? Did he land heavily? Did he land from a height? Does he land on the head or shoulder?
"Also, and this has been a big push from the players, we have to take into consideration how quickly the game is happening.
"What we hope we will see this year is a bit more common sense and rugby decisions, so you might hear us explain our decisions a bit more over the ref mic so people know how we've got to a red card (decision), yellow card or a play-on.
"We want to protect players in vulnerable positions, and people in the air are obviously vulnerable. Player safety is paramount for us."
When asked about perceived discrepancies in the reporting and punishing of players who make contact with the eye area of another player, Barnes added: "From my point of view, you have got to see all the angles. That's really the key."
New Zealand prop Owen Franks escaped sanction despite appearing to make contact with the eye area of Australia forward Kane Douglas during last Saturday's Rugby Championship clash in Wellington, with no citing made after the match.
"If, as a referee, we see a player deliberately put his fingers in someone's eye, we will deal with it, but I think we need to see all of the angles."
Other rule changes mean referees can also now play advantage following a collapsed scrum, provided there is no risk to player safety.
A player who has been substituted could only previously return to the field as replacement for an injured front-row player, a player with a blood injury, or a player taking a head injury assessment, but he can now also take over from a player who has been injured as a result of foul play.
