England coach Ben Ryan has raised concerns over the amount of time the ball is out of play as sevens looks ahead to an exciting new era leading up to Rio in 2016.
More time, more players and more tournaments are on Ryan's wish list as he looks forward to the new cycle in the IRB Sevens World Series starting next season.
'The game is structurally very solid so you just have to look at one or two small things that need to be changed. One area is the amount of time the ball is out of play. Right now it is over half the game and we need to be careful this doesn't increase,' Ryan said.
Since taking over the mantle as coach of the national sevens squad in 2007, the affable Englishman is still searching for his first Cup title at Hong Kong Stadium. It might come on Sunday. The innovative Ryan said he would like to see the game adopt some radical changes on the field, and also called for more tournaments on the circuit.
'I think we should seriously look at allowing all five substitutes on to the field,' said Ryan when asked what he would change. Only three are allowed.
Ryan's main suggestion, however, revolves around more ball time. He said teams indulged in time-wasting when taking conversions, which he felt impacted hugely on games.
'I would probably have a timed clock on the big screen for conversions and even a time-off once you have kicked the conversion before you jog back to the halfway mark for the re-start. This will ensure we get more ball time,' Ryan said.