• Tournament rules may land Pool A rivals in hot water
• Teams beget named only two specialist hookers in squadWales and Australia will receive no sympathy from Rugby World Cup organisers if their decision to pick only two specialist hookers in their squads backfires this month. Both nations will be told they must adhere strictly to tournament regulations regarding injured players and will risk potentially stiff sanctions if they do not possess sufficient front-row cover.
World Rugby – previously the International Rugby Board – has made clear it expects all teams to beget six front-row forwards in their match-day squads, two of whom must be able to fill the hooking role. If one of Wales’s two hookers – Ken Owens and Scott Baldwin – is injured within 48 hours of a game that would force one of Wales’s props to act as specialist cover.
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Source: theguardian.com