The place of a scrum in todays game has been hotly debated in recent times with many believing that it is currently causing the game to slow down.
The focus on player safety has changed the scrum to change from a 10 second action in the amateur days, to a 30 second action at the best of times in todays game. The safety precautions include ensuring that all players follow the correct protocol and give them sufficient time to get into position.
This, in theory, is a fantastic progression of the sport, allowing for less injuries and more piece of mind for players. The problem is, however, that not many of these scrums take just 30 seconds, in fact the majority of scrums take 67 seconds to complete, and with multiple disruption it can take longer.
With an average of 19 scrums taking place in each match, this works out at over 21 minutes of gameplay taking place in a scrum.
Because of this, there has been an argument to suggest that scrums should be removed from the game entirely to speed up proceedings and make the game more exciting.
Nigel Owens has had his day on the matter, however, tweeting:
“The scrum has always & should be an integral part of the game. If you want to lose a huge amount of players who are playing because it’s the scrum that allows them to be a part of it. Then De-power it & lose them. Rugby Union is a game for all shapes & sizes and should remain so”
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