This year’s Six Nations will use 20-minute red cards for the first time.
The trial was in place for the Autumn Nations Cup in November and has been extended to this year’s men’s, women’s and Under-20s Championships.
Lawmakers say the 20-minute red card is designed to “punish the player and not the team”, with sides able to replace a dismissed player after 20 minutes.
The men’s Six Nations starts on Friday, 31 January with France hosting Wales in Paris.
While referees are still able to award a full and permanent red card for “deliberate and dangerous acts of foul play”, the 20-minute red card constitutes a major change to rugby union’s disciplinary process.
A crackdown on head contact has been in place since January 2017, with a…