The 2009 Super 14 competition is just around the corner, and while the teams are gearing up for a few pre-season games, the laws surrounding the referees is set for a major change.

In the past, all Super 14 games have been refereed by a neutral referee, to avoid any biased of any kind. But as of this year, the referee will be chosen based on form, rather than where they're from. This means we could have an Australian ref officiating a game between the Brumbies and the Crusaders, a South African ref in a game between the Bulls and the Reds, or a New Zealand ref calling a game between the Hurricanes and the Cheetahs.

What this does is force the refs to be in top form every week, because only the best refs will be given games to referee. And although there will be plenty of talk over refs showing biased towards their home team, the Super 14 bosses will be quick to stamp out any cheating.

In cricket, there has never really been an issue with having an umpire from the home country officiating in ODIs, and so rugby should be no different - at least at the Super 14 level. We don't expect the law to flow through into the international arena - that wouldn't be a good idea.

It's crazy to think that the rugby season is almost upon us again - only four weeks to go until the first game between the Highlanders and the Brumbies! It'll be great to get back into the swing of things again, though, especially with much of the Black Caps action being a washout so far.