Steve Borthwick has secured a boost to his preparations for the World Cup next year, with an overhaul in the refereeing of Prem matches for the coming season designed to help England's hopes in Australia.
The Guardian understands that in the formal absence of relegation from the Prem for the first time this season, agreement has been reached over a number of law interpretations that will better align officiating in club matches with the international game.
The areas that will be policed differently include the offside line as well as the scrum – specifically the brake-foot law – as England's head coach seeks to mount a challenge to the supremacy of South Africa at the World Cup in Australia next year. Borthwick has also previously lamented how differently the breakdown is refereed in the Prem – in which there tends to be less of a contest – than the international stage. Indeed, the breakdown was a frequent problem during England's miserable Six Nations campaign, while the four-Test series between South Africa and New Zealand over the summer highlighted the ferocity with which elite nations are contesting that area of the game.
It is understood that Borthwick met the directors of rugby last month and a presentation was given by the Rugby Football Union's refereeing team on the intended law interpretations. England's scrum has markedly improved since the appointment of Borthwick, under the guidance of the assistant coach Tom Harrison.
Borthwick, however, will be mindful of how dominant South Africa, who have won the past two World Cup tournaments, are in that facet of the game and how influential it was in their series win against New Zealand.
Interestingly it was Karl Dickson, one of the RFU's professional officials, who twice penalised the All Blacks hooker Codie Taylor for brake‑foot infringements in the fourth Test in Baltimore. The brake-foot law was introduced in 2022 as a safety measure and requires the hooker to position one foot forward before engagement at the scrum. The New Zealand assistant coach Neil Barnes said afterwards that it is a law "which no one really gives a shit about, but the referees are concentrating on".
In February it was announced that the coming season, which begins on Friday with Northampton hosting Newcastle and Harlequins facing Bath, would be the first in which the Prem is formally a closed league. It is understood that the absence of the jeopardy of relegation has been a significant factor in allowing for the aligned law interpretations.
A Prem director of rugby told the Guardian: "The standard and the intensity of the Prem has increased. At international level the speed is quicker than it is in the Prem. The physicality is more intense and then there's the nature and style and strategy of the game. That comes down in part to how it's refereed and we had a conversation around the product we want to get out there and the nuances and interpretations of the laws. Can we align that with international refereeing?"