JOHN Kear has applauded the new changes coming into the Championship for next season.

The shot clock, which was brought in last year, has been reduced by five seconds to speed up the time allowed for scrums and drop-outs.

And the golden-point finish introduced in Super League will be brought in to the second tier – with a bonus point on offer for a sudden-death win for games that have finished as a draw after 80 minutes.

The Bulls coach believes the tweaks will work well for the game.

Under the new rules, teams will have 30 seconds to form a scrum and 25 to drop out from their posts.

“I’m a big fan of the shot clock,” said Kear, who often became frustrated by the slow play from opponents during the Bulls’ one season in League One. “I think it made a difference last year.

“I don’t see it as an issue because I feel our players will be conditioned well enough to play at a quick tempo.

“There’s no problem whatsoever from me. It’s a thumbs up.

“But let’s hope they do enforce it because I can’t recall one penalty given in our games last year for infringing that.”

Kear also sees the golden point as a welcome innovation – the Bulls had one stalemate in 2019 when they drew 34-34 with Swinton at Odsal. It proved a costly result when they just missed out on the play-offs.

He added: “I’m a fan of this because you are rewarded for your 80-minute efforts and then there’s obviously a further point at stake.

“That is a proper golden point, for me. It’s an extra point for your extra efforts.

“My philosophy is that endeavour should be rewarded. I’ve tried to do that with team selection and it’s good that it’s coming through from the governing body.

“The Swinton game was the one I was thinking of. It would have been a welcome point for us there but that’s in the past.”