Roar Rookie
Opinion
What is the purpose of a scrum in the National Rugby League?
It’s not a contest. It’s not an attacking option.
There is nothing about a scrum that adds to the game. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Rugby league scrums are simply a time-wasting exercise – a waste of 30 seconds, to be precise.
So what have we got? Twelve players touching in a loose formation – the combination of which is anyone in the vicinity.
The halfback – or whoever has the ball – puts the ball under the lock’s feet and then passes it to whoever is closest and then the 12 players break and go about their business.
This process guarantees the non-offending team the ball. No contest of any sort takes place.
Now, I’m OK with the non-offending team getting possession – why should the offending team have a chance to get the ball back?
But that then begs the question: why have a scrum at all?
Let’s just simply have a turnover and get on with the game.
The time the ball is in play is a problem the NRL faces these days, so perhaps axing the scrums could help.