2018 will see a stronger stance on the non wearing of mouthguards in New Zealand domestic competitions. The Domestic Safety Law Variation (DSLV) relating to this has been amended as follows:

1st player observed not wearing mouthguard = Yellow Card.
At this time the referee is to speak to the offender’s team captain and advise that any further players observed not wearing a mouthguard will be issued a red card.
The player yellow carded can return to the field of play upon expiry of the 10 minute (2 minutes in Sevens) Temporary Suspension period, but only if the player is wearing a mouth guard.
If the offending player is unable to return wearing a mouth guard, then that player can be replaced.
This will be deemed to be a permanent replacement and the offending player will not be permitted to return to the field of play under any circumstances.

2nd and subsequent player/s (from same team) observed not wearing a mouthguard = Red Card.
Players who receive a Red Card for this infringement will receive an automatic one (1) week suspension.
This will apply for preseason games as well as competition games.