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<blockquote data-quote="RedruthRFC" data-source="post: 910238" data-attributes="member: 58362">My impression is that in international rugby, subs have moved from the realm of coaching to that of sports science and are made based on performance metrics more so than what can be identified visually. IIRC at the start of his tenure Jones talked about using the time it took players to get back to their feet after contact as a metric of when they need to be substituted. Being the sort of bloke he is, no doubt he would tell you this the decline in subs is a result of his awesome fitness regime meaning that players are now up to playing for 80 minutes!I can see the argument for the sports science approach - if you wait until your eyes tell you that a player needs to be subbed off, it might be a crucial mistake that makes this clear, where as identifying the decline in performance earlier and making a proactive substitution makes this scenario less likely.Regarding the way teams lose shape and cohesion when subs are made, I don&#039;t think you&#039;ll get away from this. I don&#039;t perceive subs having this effect in a tight game when they&#039;re coming on to hang on for grim death / spark the winning score. In games in which the result is already determined, coaches are always going to take the opportunity to give rest to key players who need it and give game time to others.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="RedruthRFC, post: 910238, member: 58362"] My impression is that in international rugby, subs have moved from the realm of coaching to that of sports science and are made based on performance metrics more so than what can be identified visually. IIRC at the start of his tenure Jones talked about using the time it took players to get back to their feet after contact as a metric of when they need to be substituted. Being the sort of bloke he is, no doubt he would tell you this the decline in subs is a result of his awesome fitness regime meaning that players are now up to playing for 80 minutes! I can see the argument for the sports science approach - if you wait until your eyes tell you that a player needs to be subbed off, it might be a crucial mistake that makes this clear, where as identifying the decline in performance earlier and making a proactive substitution makes this scenario less likely. Regarding the way teams lose shape and cohesion when subs are made, I don't think you'll get away from this. I don't perceive subs having this effect in a tight game when they're coming on to hang on for grim death / spark the winning score. In games in which the result is already determined, coaches are always going to take the opportunity to give rest to key players who need it and give game time to others. [/QUOTE]

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