EXPLAINER | Rugby’s law changes a storm in a scrum cap

World Rugby's announcement last week that teams from July 1 will no longer have the option to take a scrum from a free-kick got many South Africans in a froth.

Many Springbok fans, in the belief their team possesses the most potent scrum in the world, interpreted the amendment as an attempt to emasculate the World Champions in one of the sport's defining battle grounds.

Though the Bok scrum packs a punch, as evidenced at last year's Rugby World Cup, not every law change has a sinister agenda, argued Bulls director of rugby Jake White.

The former Bok coach is far from spooked by the latest development.

“The laws of rugby are made for schoolkids,” White reminded.

“They are not made for professional players. I think people who read into that are naive.”

By way of explaining, White pointed to the squeeze ball phenomenon that was outlawed at all levels as it holds inherent risk to players who are not yet fully developed.

“Remember when players went on all fours and squeezed the ball through their legs?” White asked rhetorically.

“They cancelled that because schoolkids copied that. They see a [Lawrence] Dallaglio or a Malcolm Marx do that. They are men with strong necks so if a little kid tries that and someone lands on them they are paralysed and then parents don't want their kids to play rugby.”

World Rugby is only too aware of the existential crisis the sport is facing. It has, in some areas, radically altered the laws to make the game safer.

Laws that seek to limit injuries to the head and neck have been introduced to insulate the sport against later litigation.

Moreover, the sport's popularity is at risk if parents deem rugby a dangerous pursuit.

“If you limit the number of scrums you are going to get more kids to play rugby,” White said as he sought to cut to the chase.

“I'm not saying the scrum should be depowered. Schoolboy rugby has gone from you could scrum to you can only scrum a metre or metre-and-a-half. So it has changed.

“All I can say there is no conspiracy about that,” said White, before adding lawmakers and the referees will have to work out how many free kicks they give at scrum time.

“What I would like to stress is that the laws of the game are designed to make more people play it. The laws of the game are there to make it safer.”

In announcing the changes World Rugby also made the point that amendments are “fan focused”.

They are on a drive to up the sport’s entertainment value that will attract new audiences and grow the sport.

They said the changes are aimed at “increasing the spectacle, safety and game simplicity at the heart of a phased action plan to be implemented over the next year”.

Lions scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys said the law amendment that has caused the brouhaha in South Africa will not have a huge influence in practice.

“Not a lot of teams have used the scrum specifically from a free kick,” said Redelinghuys, whose career, that includes eight Tests, was cut short by a near catastrophic neck injury in 2016.

The former tight head prop's theory is backed by recent statistics.

“What we found is that in the last three games there were six or seven scrums on our own ball. That's two scrums a game. On their ball a little bit more.

“Because they kicked so much you have to try to dominate on their ball as well. There will always be scrums in the game. We try to play expansive rugby and will make errors so we will get opportunities to scrum.”

He stressed the scrum remains a big part of the game and helps make the sport unique.

“In [rugby] league you have similar sized guys and they play differently, but rugby, what we appreciate about it, is every player's got his place and you have different players for different roles.”