ACT Brumbies coach Dan McKellar praises Super Rugby AU law variations

The man who steered the Brumbies to last year's title has given the rule change his tick of approval, labeling it a promising way to promote attacking rugby in extra time.

Rugby Australia released a set of rule tweaks for the upcoming season on Wednesday, which included the scrapping of penalty goals and drop goals to decide matches in extra time, in favour of a golden try.

If scores are equal after 80 minutes, the first team who scores a try in an added 10-minute period will win the match.

Free kicks will now be awarded for infringements around kick-offs and restarts, while a 30-second time limit to restart play after points are scored has also been introduced.

As was the case in 2020, replacements for red-carded players can be made after 20 minutes and the 50/22 kicking rule will continue.

"I really like the golden try to be honest, a golden point just doesn't suit rugby," McKellar said.

"A couple of times we saw it last year, it was two teams trying not to lose.

"With the golden try, you've got 10 minutes of extra time where you've got to attack and try to score a try to win the game. I think that's really promising.

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"I think the 22/50, 50/22, opportunity in the back field manipulates how teams defend. I think second year in, coaches will be looking to take advantage of that more often. As we saw on Tuesday night with [Isaak] Fines' 22/50, it can swing momentum really quickly.

"It's exciting I think, the fans will see ball in play and the players want to have ball in play. I think it's good for the game and will continue to improve our product."

McKellar expects the law variations to speed up the domestic tournament, which launches next week with the Brumbies to meet the Western Force in Perth on February 19.

The Brumbies beat the Western Australian outfit 29-28 in their lone pre-season trial on Tuesday night, with McKellar saying there's plenty of improvements to be made ahead of round one.

"That's a common theme in any trial game. We learned a bit about the opposition as well, I think they're going to be a lot better this year," McKellar said.

"It was great to give some of our younger players a chance who have trained really hard for 10 weeks. I was really pleased with the last 30 minutes to be honest, with a few players in their first game in a Brumbies jersey - with Rory Scott and Reece Tapine, these sorts of players.

"They showed a lot of promise, it's given them a boost of confidence and belief heading into the competition proper."