A concussion expert has suggested Rugby Australia's historic change to tackling rules which aim to eliminate head knocks may not be the silver bullet they'd hoped for.
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Rugby Australia recently announced a new rule to reduce tackle height, now meaning any contact above the bottom of the sternum will be deemed high, and penalised.
The change will apply to every level of Australian rugby below Super Rugby, with a two-year trial at community level to be monitored by the sporting body.
It's expected in the near future Super Rugby and the international game will make the same tackling rule change as the sport continues its crackdown on concussions.
![Rugby is set for major changes. Picture by Sitthixay Ditthavong Rugby is set for major changes. Picture by Sitthixay Ditthavong](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/168198572/05cc1609-c977-424b-81c1-6fca110b35d5.jpg/r0_0_4976_2798_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
While World Rugby research into global trials has shown lowering the tackle height reduces the risk of head-to-head and head-to-shoulder contact, there is concern other issues may arise.
"Sometimes enacting changes that would be helpful in one space reducing injury, actually produce problems in others," said Gordon Waddington, professor of sport and exercise medicine at the University of Canberra.
"So that's something we would have to watch out for.
"The trial process will look at how this changes the statistics they see and does it produce other things that they couldn't see happening.
"There's no doubt that a high proportion of concussions occur as a result of the head contacting the opposition player's thigh or knee, and the lower you go the more likely you are to get into that washing machine of knees coming in at speed."
To mitigate this, Rugby Australia have urged match officials to "place greater emphasis on the existing law preventing a ball carrier from 'dipping' into a tackle and placing themselves, and potentially the defender, in an unsafe position for contact".
Waddington was supportive about the shift from rugby union overall, though, with the growing issue of concussions forcing all sports to find ways to better protect its players.
"It is really important that we constantly look at what can be done to reduce injury," he said.
"There's been progressive action from just about everybody in different sports, I think making that space safer over time.
"We know that sports injuries on the whole actually reduce the time people participate in physical activity.
"So anything that can help keep people in sport for longer with less injury is a great thing."