Super Rugby Breakdown Laws and The Lions in Australia

Super rugby is playing under an apparent law variation that keeps the attacking side of the ruck incredibly clean.

Essentially if the tackler, or anyone else for that matter, gets involved on the ground in any capacity whatsoever then the referee goes immediately into advantage for the attacking team. Even a player who genuinely is trapped and makes every honest effort to avoid impeding the ruck, who might have a body shape that slows the ruck is penalised.

The ball is being freed from the ruck at top speed and the game is open and fast as a result. Players have learned quickly and now avoid going to ground at the ruck AT ALL. This mornings Crusders v SK match was astonishingly different from 6N rugby. At times the loose forwards simply lined up almost grid-iron formation a few inches from each other and made no attempt to go into contact at all, whilst the tackler jumped from the breakdown as if he was on fire and the opposing nine whizzed the ball into the next phase.

All this is very pretty and leads to all that running and try scoring that they love down there, but my question is: Will the Lions series be played under this interpretation? and if so then will that influence Lions selection? and how on earth will we (players and coaches alike) come up to speed with this law variation given that the Aussies have been playing now for some time?

I would say that it would not be played that way as it is being trialed and not completely ratified by the IRB yet.