2014 National Rugby Championship
The 2014 National Rugby Championship was the inaugural season of Australia's National Rugby Championship, involving nine professional rugby union teams from around Australia. The competition kicked off on 21 August 2014. The final was held on 1 November 2014 and won by Brisbane City.
Teams and venues
The nine teams for the 2014 NRC season included four from New South Wales, two from Queensland, and one each from Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, and Western Australia:| Region | Team | Coach | Captain |
| ACT |  Dan McKellar | ||
| NSW | Matthew Carraro Cameron Treloar | ||
| NSW | Brian Melrose | Jed Holloway | |
| NSW | Greg Peterson | ||
| NSW | Chris Malone | | |
| QLD | Nick Stiles | David McDuling | |
| QLD | Steve Meehan | ||
| VIC | Sean Hedger | Nic Stirzaker | |
| WA |  David Wessels Kevin Foote | Rory Walton Sam Wykes Ian Prior |
Home match venues for the 2014 NRC season:
| Region | Team | Match Venue | Capacity | City |
| ACT | Viking Park | 10,000 | Canberra | |
| NSW | Caltex Park | 12,000 | Dubbo | |
| NSW | Central Coast Stadium | 20,059 | Gosford | |
| NSW | Oakes Oval | 10,000 | Lismore | |
| NSW | Wade Park | 8,000 | Orange | |
| NSW | Coogee Oval | 5,000 | Sydney | |
| NSW | Parramatta Stadium | 20,700 | Sydney | |
| NSW | Brookvale Oval | 23,000 | Sydney | |
| NSW | Leichhardt Oval | 22,000 | Sydney | |
| QLD | Suncorp Stadium | 52,500 | Brisbane | |
| QLD | Ballymore | 18,000 | Brisbane | |
| QLD | Ballymore | 18,000 | Brisbane | |
| QLD | Bond University | 5,000 | ||
| QLD | 27,000 | |||
| QLD | Mike Carney Toyota Park | 5,000 | Townsville | |
| VIC | AAMI Park | 29,500 | Melbourne | |
| WA | Adelaide Airport Oval | 15,000 | Adelaide | |
| WA | HBF Arena | 16,000 | Perth | |
| WA | Rockingham RUC | 3,000 | Perth | |
| WA | UWA Rugby Club | 4,000 | Perth |
Experimental Law Variations
As part of the initial championship, the ARU was given approval by the IRB to conduct experimental law trials as part of the 2014 National Rugby Championship. Proposed law variations were first considered by a panel composed of the current Wallabies coach Ewen McKenzie, former Wallabies coach Bob Dwyer, former Wallaby Rod Kafer and former top referee Wayne Erikson. The variations were then put to the voting public, before returning to the panel.The variations in place for the 2014 and 2015 seasons are listed below.
| Existing Law of the Game | Variation |
| Law 9.A.1 Value of a Conversion goal - 2 points Value of a Penalty goal - 3 points Value of a Dropped goal - 3 points | Value of a Conversion goal - 3 points Value of a Penalty goal - 2 points Value of a Dropped goal - 2 points Previously trialled in South Africa’s Varsity Cup. |
| Law 5.7 If time expires and the ball is not dead, or an awarded scrum or lineout has not been completed, the referee allows play to continue until the next time that the ball becomes dead. The ball becomes dead when the referee would have awarded a scrum, lineout, an option to the non-infringing team, drop out or after a conversion or successful penalty kick at goal. If a scrum has to be reset, the scrum has not been completed. If time expires and a mark, free kick or penalty kick is then awarded, the referee allows play to continue. | Non-offending team is allowed to kick the ball into touch after being awarded a penalty kick, which has been blown after time expires, and the lineout will take place. |
| Law 19.6 The player taking the throw-in must stand at the correct place. The player must not step into the field of play when the ball is thrown. The ball must be thrown straight, so that it travels at least 5 metres along the line of touch before it first touches the ground or touches or is touched by a player. | Latitude will be given to the throwing team if the opposing team does not compete for the ball near where the ball is received |
| Law 9.B.1 The kicker must take the kick within one minute and thirty seconds from the time a try has been awarded. The player must take the kick within one minute and thirty seconds even if the ball rolls over and has to be placed again. | Time limit reduced to 60 seconds for conversion kicks, and 45 seconds for penalty kicks. |
| Law 20.1 No delay. A team must not intentionally delay forming a scrum. | Team has 30 seconds to form a scrum from the time the referee gives the mark. |
| Law 20.12 When a team has won the ball in a scrum, the scrum half of the opposing team is offside if that scrum half steps in front of the ball with either foot while the ball is still in the scrum. | Opposing scrum half is not allowed to enter the gap between the flanker and number 8, even if they stay behind the ball |
| Law 21.2 The kicker must take the penalty or free kick at the mark or anywhere behind it on a line through the mark. | Increased latitude will be given to where penalty and free kicks are to be taken |
| Law 19.2 For a quick throw-in, the player must use the ball that went into touch. A quick throw-in is not permitted if another person has touched the ball apart from the player throwing it in and an opponent who carried it into touch. The same team throws into the lineout. | Players will be allowed to take quick throw-ins regardless of whether someone else has touched the ball |
| Law 17.2 Keeping players on their feet. Players in a maul must endeavour to stay on their feet. The ball carrier in a maul may go to ground providing the ball is available immediately and play continues. | Greater policing of this law, in order to discourage "hold up tackles", by ensuring that the tackler, who holds up a ball carrier in an effort to form a maul, does not collapse the maul as soon as it has formed. |
| Competition rule - Bonus point awarded for scoring 4 tries | Bonus point awarded if winning team scores 3 or more tries than their opponents. This particular system has been used in France's professional leagues since the 2007–08 northern hemisphere season. |
| Television match official protocols | Television match official to only be consulted about tries and in-goal plays. |