One of the key priorities in the 45th Fiji Bitter Marist 7s tournament is player safety.

This takes into totality the discipline of the players on the field particularly on the aggressiveness and the manner in which a tackle is being made.

Discipline has been a recurring problem in Fijian rugby and this can be rooted to the aggressive nature of grassroots rugby.

This aggressiveness has mirrored in the performance of the national 7s team in the world seven series.

To help address this, tournament director Koli Korovulavula says the Marist rugby club is introducing a new rule.

“A team that goes through each game without a card being shown gets a bonus point. It’s like when bonus tries were introduced, well this is bonus cards, and when it comes to the end of the pool games that will be the first criteria that we look at even before the point’s difference.”

This new rule will also determine a team’s progresses in the tournament.

Korovulavula says this is done to minimize indiscipline on the field and ensure player safety.

The 45th Fiji Bitter Marist 7s tournament will start tomorrow with the Under21 competition at the ANZ Stadium in Suva.