Scrums can provide the best attacking platform
A FRONT ROW VIEW OF THE GAME
Why the scrum is having to fight to stay a part of the game seems to me to be a result of a failure of coaches to be able to adapt and use it in how they want to play the game now.
It's also a failure of World Rugby to understand the need to reverse some of the decisions they have put in place that have created the problem of delays and resets at virtually every international game while taking away a lot of the competition in the game that the scrum had previously showcased.
Part of the problem I think comes from players no longer being able to learn their trade by playing against older players as they develop their own playing style with the number of age grade variations reducing the opportunity for mixed age game.
When I began playing senior club rugby I was about 17 and played a game for the school in the morning and another for a club in the afternoon. That second game was against ‘old men' in their 30s and 40s who had the experience of playing in the front row for years and knew all the tricks of the trade. This meant each game I played was like a lesson in how to play in the front row, giving me knowledge of how to protect myself while still creating disruption among the opposition. The experience that gave me at such a young age allowed me to compete against much bigger opponents at all levels of the game.
In the article by Paul Rees in last week's Rugby Paper about the future of the scrum, former Test referee Nigel Owens said: “We don't want scrums to be the most important part of the game.” But that is exactly what it is and has been if you know how to use it properly.
Since the scrum evolved from the mass brawl containing all of those on the field to the relatively modern eight player unit, its function changed from dominating the whole game to being the play that creates space for the backs to exploit by isolating a majority of players in a single area of the pitch. In order to do that a number of tactics were used including driving, wheeling and holding with the release of the ball at different stages of the scrum.
As an attacking platform a scrum can be one of the best opportunities, better than a lineout or breakdown that is created on the field by doing something as simple as wheeling, slightly moving the opposition backrow further away from their own back line enabling the attacking team to gain more ground.
For those who understand the intricacies of the scrum, it is a fascinating process to watch as they unfold, which can be just as captivating to see as a quick handling backs attack. Many of today's front row players don't appear to know how to hold a position or keep a scrum up at a low level with a number selected for their field play rather than their set piece game. This explains why there are so many collapses and resets particularly as many referees have little or no knowledge about the scrum, issuing penalties to whichever side had the put in.
Nobody should challenge match officials during the game, but World Rugby needs to ensure that the laws are applied fairly and correctly as otherwise the game will continue to dwindle. I say this because the referees now seem to give penalties at the scrum for things that shouldn't have been penalised at all, like a wheel which is only illegal if you pull the opposition. Yet, the failure to enforce the law that states the ball must be put in straight, even if it is fed closer to your own hooker, when there is a blindingly obvious crooked feed in every scrum.
This appears to have lead coaches down a path of coaching packs to go all out for a penalty rather than use the scrum to create an opportunity for attacking or defensive play,
These actions can alter the outcome of a game causing frustration and anger among spectators because nobody goes to a game to see how many penalties each side can kick, preferring a proper contest with players competing with each other through out the match to decide the winning team.
