Once again I am hearing the cries for banishing, or emasculating, the rugby union scrum. This can only come from individuals with a personal prejudice against the scrum and a lack of understanding of the game.<\/p>\n
As I pointed out in my facebook post referencing George Hook\u2019s Independent article, the scrum is only one of the many things that can be sited as impinging on the \u201cspectacle\u201d of rugby union. George\u2019s pet peeve was the interminable rucks and mauls created by attacking sides that don\u2019t know how to open up space. Then, there are other things reducing the spectacle as well, for instance, the kicking game. Aerial ping-pong reduces the time the ball is in hand, and therefore, presumably, detracts from the \u201cspectacle\u201d that these scrum haters espouse.<\/p>\n
To me, the beauty of rugby union 15s is the complexity of the sport. If you start removing basic parts of the game, you reduce the complexity, and therefore the possibilities. It is the endless possibilities of the combinations of rugby\u2019s essential elements, the pass, the tackle, the kick, the dummy, the ruck, the maul, the scrum, the lineout, etc., that make the game fascinating, and yes, spectacular.<\/p>\n
It is up to the players to employ the elements of rugby union to create the game itself. The coaches have some input, but only as suggestions as to what might happen on the pitch. It is up to the players\u2019 creativity to make the game happen.<\/p>\n
A jazz drummer once defined jazz for me as \u201cspontaneous, simultaneous composition.\u201d That is basically what we have in rugby union, spontaneous, simultaneous invention, within the laws of the game, by the 15 players on the field, to create the opportunity to score more points than the opposition. When it is done right and with creativity, it is a thing of beauty. But, it can\u2019t be done without the basic elements. The fewer the elements, the less the possibilities. The less the possibilities, the lower the chance of creating the spectacular.<\/p>\n
I agree that there may be some tweaking of the scrum required. The tweaks should not depower or reduce the scrums importance in any way. Rather they should enhance the probability of each scrum being completed efficiently, quickly and without collapse. My personal favorite is to go back to the time when only two injury substitutions were allowed AND require a team to forfeit a match if they can\u2019t field a competitive front-row. This would reduce the specialization of the players, requiring them to learn multiple roles and functions, becoming generalists once again and increasing the number of possibilities. Who is to say a modern number six couldn\u2019t learn the role of prop, or number seven that of hooker? The players are already filling game time roles out of their normal function: a prop making a clearing pass from the back of a ruck; a hooker filling in in the back line; a second-row making a kick; a wing cleaning in a ruck.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not a spectacle. It\u2019s a sport. Those that continually espouse the spectacle over the sport are just looking for quick wins in attracting mindless spectators to our sport. That is what we have come to in the professional era. It is wrong-headed, though. What rugby union really needs is committed, thoughtful and passionate rugby fans. The only way we will get them will be to continue to provide a complex game where creativity makes the possibilities endless.<\/p>\n