The calls to start the scrum as of the 2014/15 season are "crouch, bind, set." On crouch, the front rows crouch so that their heads are not next to their teammates. Bind indicates the time for the props to bind onto their opposite man. The bind is to the shirt on the back or side, not the sleeve, arm, collar or chest, and there is to be no downward pressure applied by any prop. The flankers bind onto their second rows with at least one arm, and the number 8 binds with his or her head between either the two locks or a lock and a flanker. "Set" is not an instruction to come together, but rather a indication that they may do so.
The scrum half can then put the ball in when the scrum is stable, steady and stationary, with the tunnel running parallel to the goal lines. The scrum may not move until the ball has been put in. The ball must be put in so that the major axis of the ball is parallel to the ground and the touch line.
I'm sorry if this is a bit dry, but these points need to be made as they are part of the law that make up the scrum. Without the scrum, we do not have rugby union. We end up with rugby league, and I personally hate refereeing matches where the scrums are uncontested. It's boring, the forwards use up their energy in the rucks and mauls and things get far feistier. What makes it boring for spectators (and wingers) is the endless restarts of scrums that seem to be taking over.
From what I've seen, there are a series of failings going on that are not being penalised. The first is the feed of the scrum half. Now, arguably, this is two issues. The scrum half has to put the ball in straight, and rightly so, but in doing so, he gives his team a warning that the ball is coming in. The attacking team then poises to attack the scrum, and often takes a slight step forward as the scrum half puts the ball in. This half step is often enough to push the defending team to a position where they cannot hook the ball, meaning they have already lost the scrum. The correct outcome here? Free kick to the defending team. The attacking team has driven before the ball has entered the scrum, the official starting point of a scrum. Technically, the scrum half hasn't done anything wrong, but it looks like a feed. Feeding is still an issue, but it's a different problem. We penalise not straights at lineouts, so why are we so reluctant to punish feeding at the scrum? My guess is referees are too busy watching every other detail of the scrum. It's a dangerous place, and we have to be safe.
Which brings me to my next point. The call to the scrum changed this season to make the scrum safer, by reducing the impact on players and eliminating the "hit." Yet... It is coming back. The correct procedure should have the players holding the position between each call. Crouch, stable, steady. Bind, stable, steady. Set, stable, steady. Ball in, down the middle, scrum begins. Hurray, a fair and even contest. And I'll be damned if it ever actually happens at a professional level. The trend coming in is one of the hit, the damn illegal hit, coming back. Watch out for it. The front rows pull back ever so slightly, and slam themselves into each other. This impact, although less than before, is still the cause of so many collapsed scrums. It throws the weight of the props off balance, so when the ball enters, the scrum isn't stable and it will collapse more often than not, leading to a restart, or a penalty.
Moving further back, there is something creeping in that is never penalised. Next scrum you watch, look at the flankers. Often, they reach forward and bind on the opposition prop, pushing them so that they cannot drive squarely. Outcome? Penalty for not driving square. What should happen? Penalty against the flanker. This has never been penalised, at least that I have seen, and it is dangerous play. The flanker puts pressure on the prop, meaning his hips turn out, his shoulders go in, and the scrum starts to fold in. It's wrong and dangerous. I cannot stress enough. It actually exposes the flankers own prop. Flankers in a scrum are there to push into the scrum, their weight anchoring the props into place, and driving the forces towards the goal line.
One final point. The wheeling of a scrum. As a concept, I find this very odd. Any A level physicist will tell you the natural driving forces of a scrum will cause it to wheel to the right, into the tight head, or clockwise. Two men, the hooker and the loose head, will push the tight head back, whilst it slowly turns. Chances are, seeing a deliberate wheel going in that direction are very slim, unless a player falls straight to ground. For me, the deliberate wheel penalty should be given either as a result of a anti-clockwise wheel or is dependant the speed of which a scrum rotates. And often, a speedy wheel will come because the tight head either turns his shoulder in and collapses, or the attacking loose head turns out his hips, turning his pressure into the scrum instead of parallel to it.
So how can we prevent the tiresome issues from biting? We have to go through a period of rampant penalising in order to get the message through. Everything that is seen as illegal needs to be penalised, and it needs to be down fairly and consistently. A collapsed scrum is not always due to players action. Often the balance isn't right, or the pitch slips beneath the studs, which means they must reset to start the game properly. And by restart, I mean restart. In the event of a restarted scrum, the clock needs to be stopped until the ball is at the base of the scrum, at the number 8's feet. At this point, there are three options: play the ball through either the 8 or scrum half, or keep driving on. The penalty, if it came, would then be due to a dominant scrum, or we will have a scrum actually going backwards, which is not illegal, nor dangerous whilst all players are on their feet. Until an offence occurs, the scrum should carry on. And I don't mean just in that one game. I mean in the entirety of this game we call Rugby Union. The scrum needs to stay.
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